A Minute Too Late
by SelfDoubter
Summary: What happens when Jane and Maura haven't discussed their true feelings for one another. Jane finally gets the courage to tell Maura only to find that Maura has been kidnapped by Hoyt's latest apprentice. Will be Rizzles. Please see rating, M for violence, language and sexytimes in later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Notes: I do not own Rizzoli and Isles, just taking these lovely ladies out for a spin. First time publishing a fanfic so please be kind. Comments are always appreciated.

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The honey blonde M.E. stands in her closet trying to decide which pair of Jimmy Choo's would go perfect with her dress. Why was this so hard today? She knew something has shifted in her relationship with Jane but she wasn't quite sure what it was. The lanky brunette has been acting a little strange ever since she realized she was no long with Ian. She loved Jane, no she was in love with Jane. But she also didn't want to admit her feelings and have Jane run for the hills. Jane wasn't interested in women, sure she loved her but only as a friend. She sighs and settles on a pair of 3 inch slingback heels. She checks herself in the mirror once more before heading off to work.

As she walks up to the precinct steps she can't help but smile as Jane greets her.

"Good morning, Maura."

"Good morning, Jane." That smile, she has come to realize that Jane has a few different types of smiles. The one she uses at work to greet everyone, the one she uses with the families of victims and the one that seems to only appear when Maura is around. That one seems to add a sparkle to her eyes and makes her dimples pop. As they ascend the stairs Jane moves her hand to Maura's lower back the way she always did when the blonde was walking up a flight of stairs or through a crime scene in sky high heels.

"How was your night?" She can't stop the small pang in her heart when she thinks about Jane on a date with Casey. It is unfair for her to feel so jealous about Jane having a life but it doesn't hurt any less.

"It was alright, we went to the Robber and then back to my apartment to watch the game." The brunette shrugs.

"It sounds like you had a good night. Is everything okay? You seem a little bummed." She walks through the front door the brunette is holding for her. She smiles as the small chivalrous gesture, something the taller woman does all the time. She wonders if Jane even knows she does little things like that whenever they are together.

"Nah I'm good. Just thinking too much I think." Jane said as we make our way through the Division One Cafe. She stands back and watches the two Rizzoli women interact with fascination. Her relationship with her own mother is the complete opposite.

Good morning, Maura, you want some coffee or maybe some bunny pancakes?" The older Rizzoli asks with a smile. Never once has she felt like an outside with the Rizzoli family. Angela has accepted and treated her like family from day one.

"I would love some coffee." She says, they make their way over to their usual table.

"What? Do I have something on my face?" Jane is looking at her with a tilted head and confusion on her face.

"I, no sorry please continue. What are you thinking too much about?" A deep crimson blush flashes up her neck. Damn it. Jane caught her staring at her just can't help herself, Jane is just too gorgeous for her to not stare.

"It's Casey, I just don't know. I love him but I just don't think I am in love with him. He is always running of to Afghanistan. I know I should be head over heels for him but I'm just not. It's like something is missing." Her heart hurts seeing Jane like this. All she wants to do right now is get up and hug her and tell her everything will be okay.

"Thanks Angela." She says as the older Rizzoli brings over their food and coffee. "I'm so sorry Jane. What can I do to help?"

"I don't think anyone can help. This is something I need to decide on my own. But thanks Maura.."

"Just know that if you ever want to talk about it or not talk about it I am here for you." She watches as Jane finishes her pancakes. Just tell her how you feels. Tell her you love her. As she walks into her office she can't help but wonder if Jane even truly knows what's upsetting her. She sit at her desk and opens her laptop to see if the DNA results are in on the John Doe have come in yet.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you all for the reviews, this has been a pet project of mine for a while now. And I am hoping to be able to get up a chapter or two a week. I promise this will be Rizzles in the end but a little angst needs to help the girls a long. Please keep coming with the reviews, I truly want to make this story a good one and peer reviews will only help aid that process.**

 **Again I do not own Rizzoli and Isles I am just taking them out for a spin. Hope you all enjoy.**

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The brunette steps into the bullpen and plops down in her seat. She runs her hands through her long raven curls and groans. "Hey Frost anything new with case?" Jane flips open the folder on her desk and looks over the photo's.

"No, we have been going over everything and they only thing we know for sure is he wasn't killed in the park. I am having Dr. Isles take another look at those two marks on the back of his neck." Frost says as he passes you the photo. At first glance they look like two small bruises, she furrows her brow as she picks up the photo to get a better look.

"Yeah that's a good idea. Did Maura say what the cause of death might be? Has she run a tox screen yet?" Something about this is so familiar, those marks are something she has seen before but she cannot place exactly where.

"Hey I'm gonna run down and talk to Maura real quick." She tosses the photos back in the folder and takes it with her on her way down to the morgue. The elevators open and Jane makes her way to the morgue stops and observes the honey blonde beauty for a moment before making herself known. "Hey Maura."

"Jane, did I forget to tell you I was going to come up and see you when I finished?" The blonde pushes her goggles up with her forearm as she places her scalpel down on the tray.

"No you told me, I was just going over some of the photos and noticed two small bruises on the back of his neck."

Before she could continue the M.E. interrupted her. "Burns, not bruises. This is why I don't like to speculate Jane." The blonde leans down and rolls the victim on his side and waves for Jane to join her. "In the photos it may appear to be bruising but upon further examination I can definitively say they are burns. Most likely from a taser."

"But that's not the cause of death is it? Have you found any sort of trauma to the body apart from the burns?" She leans back against the counter and folds her arms across her chest. Something about the burns, the taser marks are stuck in her head. But why?

"No, I haven't found any external cause of injury. They only thing other thing I have found so far is a small puncture on his left basilic vein. But I am just about to begin my internal examination. You can stay if you'd like otherwise, I can come find you upstairs when I am done."

Jane can't help but smile at the honey blonde. Even with her scrubs and her hair pulled back in a loose ponytail she's still the most gorgeous women she has ever seen. _Stop that, Maura is your best friend. You are in the middle of a case._ She doesn't even realize she has been just staring at Maura until she hears the M.E. clear her throat. "You okay Jane?"

"Uh, yeah, I'm fine sorry. Just thinking about the case. I'll let you get to work but please let me know if you find anything else. We are a little stumped at the moment with lack of evidence at the scene." She runs her fingers through her unruly curls before turning on her heels and heading back up to the bullpen.

"Hey Vince, you find anyone who witnessed the vic being staged?" She drops into her chair and flips her computer on. "How many taser cases have we had recently? I feel like the taser is going to be the tip on this one." She starts an internal search for all taser related case they have had recently.

"No we got nothin, the woman who found him was just running through the park. I didn't find any link between her and the victim. We did get an I.D. though, his name is David Jefferson, 36, lived alone, worked as a data processor at the IBM over in Cambrige. No priors, no nothing from what I found he is just a regular guy. What did the doc say?" Vince pushes back from his keyboard and tilts his head as he watches Jane click between old case files.

"Uh.." She looks up from her monitor, grabbing her coffee. "Not much, no external cause of death that she could see. Just the taser marks on the back of his neck and a small puncture mark on his left arm vein thingy. Maura was going to start the internal examination. I didn't stick around decided to come up and go through old cases see what I can find."

After about an hour of going over case after case she finally gave in. It was already 5 o'clock and the lack of leads was truly getting to her. She grabs her phone and shoots a quick text to Maura. _Hey I'm headed home for the day want to come to my place for a movie and some dinner? J_

Just as she climbs in the drive seat her phone dings.

 _Yeah that sounds good. Want me to pick up some Chinese? M_

 _Chinese sounds great thanks. See you soon. J_

 _See you soon. M_

She can't help but smile as how quickly the honey blonde responded. She really needs to quite getting so excited about her best friend coming over. Maura doesn't love Jane the same was she does, sure she loves her but not as anything other than her best friend. She quickly makes her way to her apartment and hurries and takes Jo Friday out for a quick walk. She barely has time to toss the paper towel she just used to wipe off the counter before there was a knock at the door.

"Hey.." Her words are cute short as she lays eyes upon the honey blonde standing before her in a pair of nearly painted on black yoga pants and a loose collared navy t-shirt. Casual Maura is probably one of her favorite versions.

"Can I come in Jane?" The M.E. holds up a Chinese takeout bag and a six pack of Blue Moon.

"Yeah, right sorry. Here let me take those." She steps aside to allow Maura entry to her apartment and grabs the beers before heading to the fridge. "I opened a bottle of wine for you." She motions to the glass of red wine set out to breathe on the counter.

"Thanks Jane." She smiles and grabs the glass before taking a seat at the counter. "What did you want to watch?"

"Anything you want." She grabs a beer discards the top in the recycle bin Maura made her buy. "You hungry now or did you want to start a movie?"

"Are you sure you are alright?" Maura furrows her brow in concern for her best friend.

"I'm alright, this case is just getting to me. Did you find anything on the internal examination?"

"No, but I should have the full toxicology report tomorrow. Why don't we eat and find something to watch, it doesn't need to be a movie. I am sure there is some sort of sporting event on tonight."

"Sounds good there is a Bruins game on?" She offers the blonde a cheesy smile as she grabs their food and makes her way to the living room. She takes a seat on the far side of the couch.

"Basketball is fine Jane." She laughs as she takes a seat next to Jane.

"Hockey, Maura. The Bruins are a hockey team." She laughs and shakes her head as she passes her favorite honey blonde her dish. The watch the game and eat and neither women say much. Jane does however steal a few glances over at Maura. It still blows her mind that the woman sitting next to her can be so prim and proper at work and in public but once she steps inside Jane's apartment it's like she lets her true self show.

As the game winds down she feels Maura's head drop on her shoulder. She tenses her body for a moment before she relaxes and looks over to see the blonde's eyes have closed. How many times has this happened, at this point it's too many to count. If she is being honest with herself every time Maura comes over or vice versa she hopes they will end up like this.

When the game is over Jane reaches for the remote and turns off the TV. A strand of honey blonde hair has fallen over Maura's face, she reaches over and tucks the strand behind Maura's ear.

"Mmm, Jane."

"You fell asleep Maura. Sorry I didn't mean to wake you." She snaps back to her spot on the couch. _You idiot! Now she thinks you are some sort of freak._ She sighs and shifts to turn to look at Maura. "Why don't you go to my bed and I'll sleep on the couch. You are too tired and I don't want you driving home."

"I am not kicking you out of your bed Jane. And how many times have we slept in the same bed? Let's go you look about as tired as I feel." She stands and extends her hand to Jane.

"Alright, let's get you to bed." She nervously wipes her hands on her sweats before she takes the blonde's offered hand.

Once in the bedroom Jane moves to her side of the bed and pulls down the covers on her side and Maura does the same on hers. They both climb in and lay flat on their backs, Jane pulls the covers over both of them. "NIght Maura."

"Goodnight Jane." The honey blonde quickly falls asleep.

Jane lays there staring at the ceiling for about an hour before she rolls on her side and drifts off to sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

**Just wanted to say thanks to everyone reading and following this story. I have really enjoyed delving into the R &I fandom. I promise this will be Rizzles in the end. There are some major twists coming up so please be patient with me.**

 **Again, I do not own Rizzoli and Isles. Just looking to have some fun with our favorite ladies. Thanks again for reading. Please leave me comments, your feedback is always welcome.**

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Her normal circadian cycle has the honey blonde stirring at a quarter to six. She shifts slightly until her brain begins to process her body. She can feel a heaviness over her abdomen and her left calf. It isn't until the familiar lavender scent hits her senses that she realizes at some point during the night her best friend had wrapped her up and is now snuggled close to her back. _I could get used to waking up like this. Wait, no, Jane is your best friend she doesn't feel the same way you do._ She shifted her weight which caused the brunette to mumble and tighten her grip. The brunette's pull seems to make up the blonde's mind for her. What will it hurt to go back to sleep for another hour? They both need to be at the precinct by 9 a.m. so she presses her back further into the brunette's front and closes her eyes and drift back off to sleep.

Jane's alarm blared to life at a quarter after seven in the morning. The honey blonde didn't dare move because the position she had awoken to earlier was how she found herself once again. The burnette groaned behind her and stiffened once she was awake enough to realize the pair were cuddled. She quickly untangled herself and smacked the alarm. The honey blonde couldn't help but frown at the loss of contant. She rolled on her back staring at the ceiling. If there was one thing about Jane she knew for sure it was that the lanky woman was not big on physical contact. "Good morning, Jane."

The brunette woke to the shock of her life when she opened her eyes to find herself wrapped tightly around her best friend. She cleared her throat before responding to the honey blonde woman laying next to her. "Hmmhmmm, good morning. D..did you sleep okay?"

"Yes, thank you. I don't think I have slept that soundly in a long time." She said softly.

The M.E. stretched her sleepy limbs before sitting up cross legged on the bed. She look over her shoulder at the woman she love. _She doesn't love you like that. Stop torturing yourself._ God she truly is gorgeous even when just waking up. Her unruly curls a little more puffed out than normal with sleep lines across her left cheek.

"How did you sleep?" She asks before swinging her legs over the edge of the bed and standing to stretch out fully.

"Not bad. Uh, sorry about that." The brunette rubs the back of her neck and looks sheepishly over at Maura.

"Don't be, I'm not." The honey blonde says nonchalantly. "Would you mind it terribly if I took a quick shower?"

"Nah, go ahead I'll go start some coffee." The brunette twists and cracks her back before heading to the kitchen.

"Thanks."

The M.E. makes her way to the small hall bathroom. Once inside she clicks the door closed and slumps against the door. "Get yourself together." She mutters before pushing off the door and turning on the shower. She quickly slips out of her clothes folding them and placing them on the counter. Once the shower has reached the perfect temperature she slides under the hot stream. She lets out a sigh as her muscles relax, she stands directly under the running water for a few minutes just allowing herself a moment to process all that has occurred in the last 18 hours. First, she finds herself slumped over and asleep on the brunette's shoulder, and the brunette never said a word or attempted to move her. And this morning, she finds herself being the little spoon to Jane's big spoon. It was probably wrong of her to not try and move out of the warm embrace but she couldn't make herself move even if she tried. Something has to give, she can't keep doing this to herself. She promised herself she would do whatever it takes to keep Jane in her life but it's only getting harder. She will not lose her best friend but maybe she should pull back a little. The lanky brunette has never given her any indication she felt anything more than friendship towards the honey blonde.

She remembers she needs to be quick because there is another person needing a shower before work. She makes quick work of shampooing and conditioning her hair, and the moment that light lavender scent hits her scenes she smiles. She turns the water off and grabs a towel before heading back to the bedroom to get dressed.

"All yours." She simply says, before stepping back into Jane's bedroom to get dress. This isn't the first night she has stayed over so she knows there is at least two clean work outfits in the back of the brunette's closet. She changes quickly before finishing her hair and makeup. When she returns to the kitchen the lanky woman is nowhere insight, she could hear the shower running once again so she decided to sit and enjoy a quiet cup of coffee.

As she reads through a few work emails she hears the shower turn off and the door opens letting the steam out of the room. It take every ounce of self restraint she has not to let her mouth gape open and gauck at the stunning woman walking through the hall.

"I'll be right out." The brunette waves a hand at the M.E. before disappearing once again into her bedroom to get ready for the day.

"Someone just shoot me." The blonde mumbles as she presses her mug to her lips taking a long sip of coffee. It only took Jane about ten minutes to get ready and she came back to the kitchen.

"Hey you ready, Maura?" The brunette tilts her head in confusion as she realizes her best friend is just staring at her. "Hello, earth to Maura!" Jane waves her hands in front of the honey blonde's face.

"Uh, yeah. Sorry, let me just get my clothes and purse and I am all set." Maura hadn't even realized she was just staring at her best friend. She quickly gets up from her stool and walks her mug to the kitchen sink and rinses it out before grabbing her things and heads towards the door.

"I just checked my email and I still haven't gotten the full tox screen yet on David Jefferson. I will call once I am in the office. I see no visible cause of death so I am hoping something will pop up on the screen." She tends to ramble on about facts or anything in general with she is embarrassed or flustered. And at this moment she is most certainly both.

"Sounds good Maura." Jane says as they head to their cars. "See you at the station."

"Drive safe." The honey blonde gets in her car and follows along behind the blonde as they head to work. She meets up with the brunette while waiting for the elevator.

"Hey, you wanna grab lunch later?" Jane says as she smiles over at Maura.

"Sounds like a da..I mean plan." A deep blush creeps up her neck as she slips quickly inside the elevator and mashes the button to close the doors. _Really? Did you nearly just call an innocent lunch invitation with your best friend a date? Idiot._ Once she reaches the ground level she heads straight to her office.

Half way through her morning she hears her computer go off indicating a new email has arrived. The M.E. takes a seat and quickly opens the file. She is slightly taken aback by the finds. She quickly grabs her phone and text Jane.

 _ **I got the lab results back on Mr. Jefferson. Do you guys have a minute for me to run up there and show you what I found? M**_

Not even two minutes later the honey blonde's phone buzzes.

 _ **Yes, please. We are currently at a stand still so if you found something we would love to hear it. J**_

 _ **I'll be right up. M**_

She quickly prints a few copies of the report and tosses them in a folder and heads up to the bullpen.


	4. Chapter 4

**Hello all, thanks for following me this far. Comments are always welcome.**

 **Alas I still do not own Rizzoli and Isles. Hope you all are enjoying my take on these two lovely ladies.**

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With her files tucked under her arm she makes her way to the elevators, pressing the door closed and heads up to the bullpen to see Jane and the other two detectives. When the elevator doors ding open she walks directly over to the lanky woman's desk. She places the folder down and sighs.

"I now have a confirmation on the cause of death." She sighs and leans against Jane's desk.

"And?" Frost asks as he takes a seat at his desk, Korsak rounds his desk and reaches for a copy of the toxicology report.

"Essentially he was euthanized. I found large quantities of Propofol, Ketamine and Diazepam in his system. Which doesn't help much in this case, aside from the fact that those drugs are something a doctor would need to prescribe. But what's I find truly odd is the concentration levels, they are something you would see used for a lengthy surgery not just a daily dose. And by my physical examination they were administered intravenously. I am going to run a tissue sample from his arm to confirm. But it's really just a formality at this point." The honey blonde lets out a long sigh and pinches the bridge of her nose.

"And we are sure this guy is on the straight and narrow? No enemies?" Jane asks her male counterparts. "I mean come on, someone put this guy down like an animal. This can't be some random thing. There is something here we are overlooking. Maura there was no other physical evidence on him? You did find some little bug in his shoe tread or something?"

"There is some gravel particulates that were embedded in his shoes and some dust on the bottom hem of his slacks but other than that I found nothing else. The particulates and dust are already at the lab but it is going to take some time. I'm sorry Jane, sorry guys." She looks over at the three detectives with furrowed brows. She feels like she is missing something too. Something that should be more than obvious.

"Look, Doc, this isn't your fault. You are doing the best you can. We all know that." Korsak gives the M.E. a sympathetic look. "The family has been notified and they are going to arrange for the funeral home to come pick up the body once you are through. I did tell them it may take a bit, especially with the lack of evidence. The mother and sister understood."

"Once I get the results from the tissue sample, I really don't see the need to keep the body any longer. I have been over everything dozens of times and still I have nothing." Her voice is strained. She looks over to the brunette who places her hand over Maura's.

"We know you are doing everything possible for this case Maura. There's just not a lot to go on. I feel like it has to be professional. The lack of physical evidence has to be an indication of someone who has been doing this for a while." She gives the blonde's hand a gentle reassuring squeeze.

"Thanks, Jane. I'm going to leave you guys to it while I go finish my official report." She gently reaches up and squeezes Jane's hand back before she pushes herself off the edge of the desk and heads back down to the morgue.

"Hey, Korsak, did the family have any insight on who did this or why it happened? Did the vic ever say anything about being threatened?" Jane says as she watches the M.E. leave the bullpen.

"Nah, the mother seemed genuinely stunned. She just wanted to know when she could bring her son home." The older detective made his way back to his desk.

"Ugh! We still have basically nothing other than he was put down like some dog." The brunette grunts and runs her fingers through her hair. And right now all she can think about is how upset Maura is about not being able to find anything. It's like someone is messing with them.

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A few hours later down in the M.E.'s office the computer alerted the honey blonde of new incoming mail. She finishes her autopsy body chart before opening the email. She purses her lips at the results, she isn't one to make assumptions but her theory held true. There wasn't a high concentration of the drugs in the surrounding tissue. Which means it was directly administered into the vein and it was done with medical precision.

She grab her phone from the desk and quickly texts Jane.

 _ **I got the tissue samples back. Could you please come down here whenever you get a free moment. M**_

She is sitting on her couch with the file on Mr. Jefferson scattered across the top of the table in front of her she doesn't even notice that the brunette has entered the room until she plops down on the couch next to her.

"Geez, Jane! You scared me. I swear I need to put a bell around your neck." She jumps as the brunette makes herself known in true Jane Rizzoli fashion.

"Whatcha got?"

"My theory was correct, the drugs were administered directly into the vein with precision. The person who did this has a decent amount of medical training."

"I thought you never guess?" The brunette chuckles and nudges the honey blonde with her elbow. She can tell something is bothering her best friend and she would do anything to make things better for her.

"I didn't guess Jane. I had a theory and after performing the proper tests I have made a definitive conclusion. There's a difference." She can't help but smile as the brunette attempts to lighten the mood. Jane is probably the only person that can pull her out of the funk she is in about this case. She agrees with Jane about how this case seems familiar.

The two women sit in comfortable silence for several minutes before the lanky detective finally speaks. "So where does that put us in regards to the body? The family is really wishing to bring him home."

"I see no reason to keep it, we have done everything we can. All of the physical evidence has been collected. The only thing I am waiting to hear back on is the particulates and the dust from his shoes and slacks." Maura says as she leans back against the couch. As she leans back her hand brushes the brunette's hip and she would swear she saw the other woman inhale sharply. Jane always seems to have a reaction to any small unintended touch. "You okay Jane?"

"Yeah I'm fine. I will call and let the family know they can begin arranging for his funeral." Jane says as she wrings her hands together. They seem to be sorer than usual, which is odd because it's usually only the weather nowadays that can cause them to hurt.

"Alright, I think I will stay a little bit longer, see if we get any hits on the particulates and dust. You should go home though, nothing else for you guys to do. I'll text you later though." The M.E. doesn't move from her reclined position on the couch. They have all put in a long day but she wants to stay and see if going over the reports one more time will give her any more insight.

"Are you sure? I can stay and hang around for a bit. Besides what am I going to do if I leave? You're my only friend Maura if you aren't around I am just sitting in my drabby apartment drinking beer and watching SportsCenter." The brunette chuckles at her own pathetic admission.

"I'm sure." The honey blonde smiles as she watches the brunette get up from the couch.

"Don't stay to late Dr. Isles. Doctors need their rest too." She smiles and heads to the elevators before grabbing her things and heading home for the day.

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Still nothing back on the dust and particulates and the honey blonde was still getting nowhere with review her notes. She leans back on her chair and closes her eyes for a moment, or what she thought was a moment. The next thing she knows she hears the loading bay bell ring and it startles her awake. Maybe Jane was right, she needed to go home and get some sleep.

She looks at the clock to find that she had fallen asleep for several hours because it is now a quarter to midnight. She found it strange that someone would be picking up or dropping off a body at this hour. She hadn't been notified of another case, so she opened her laptop to check the security feed. A man in a baseball back was standing at the back door. She clicks the button and asks. "May I help you?"

"Uh yeah I am from McKenzie Funeral home. I'm here to pick up David Jefferson." He said clearly into the small box next to the door.

Again she finds it a bit strange that he would be here to pick up the body this late but maybe the family had requested an immediate pick up. She hits the buzzer and lets him in. She walks into the morgue to greet the man.

"Good evening, I'm Dr. Isles." She extends her hand to the stranger.

"Hey, I'm Jason Roland." He shakes her hand and quickly lets it go.

"Mr. Jefferson is in one of our back deep freezers if you'll follow me I will show you the way." The honey blonde leads him through a set of double doors and over to the freezer drawers. She steps up to drawer 4 and reaches for the latch when her whole body freezes up. She tries to speak but no words come out and her body seems to be twitching. It took a few seconds for the pinch in the back of her neck to register with her brain.

"Oh, Dr. Isles you make this too easy." The man says in the most sleazy voice she has ever heard.

"Jjjjj." She tries to speak but she cannot form any words. The man is lowering her down onto the gurnee and begins zipping up the black bag. He pulls a syringe out of his pocket and plunges it into the M.E.'s neck. Her eyes grow wide with fear but that's the only response her body has. She watches as he finishes zipping the bag up over her face. Maura is left in darkness but for only a moment when the drugs coursing through her system start to kick in and she blacks out completely.

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 **I am so sorry to leave you all with this cliffhanger. Please don't hate me. I am going to try and get the next chapter up as soon as possible. It will for sure be up by no later than Sunday evening.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello all, thanks for sticking with me this far. Just want warn you all this chapter comes with a trigger warning for implied rape and also violence.**

 **Again I do not own Rizzoli and Isles. Hope you all enjoy this latest chapter.**

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Jane made a quick stop at the Division One Cafe to grab a coffee before heading up to the bullpen for the day. She had text Maura last night and again this morning but still hadn't heard back from the honey blonde. She chalked it up to her best friend staying late and obsessing over the case, she like the rest of them was confused by the lack of evidence in this case.

"Janie!" The Rizzoli matrichard shouted and leaned over the counter to give her daughter a peck on the cheek.

"God, Ma. Why are you always so loud in the morning." As much as her mother annoyed her to no end, she wouldn't trade her for the world. She has been the most supportive and welcoming person on the plant.

"Someone grumpy, you want something to eat? I can make you some pancakes?"

"Sorry, Ma. This case is putting us all a little on edge. Can I just get some coffee? I'm already running late as is." She shoots her mother an apologetic look. She doesn't mean to be rude it's not her fault they can't find any physical evidence in this case. "Hey have you seen Maura this morning?"

"No, sweetie, I haven't I don't think she came home last night either." Jane stomach does a backflip. Something wasn't right, Maura always goes home. If for no other reason than to take a quick shower and get dressed up in another runway ready outfit. "Here's your coffee."

"If you see her tell her I am looking for her, okay?" She quickly takes the coffee from her mother and makes her way to the elevators.

It wasn't like Maura to not at least text Jane back. Even if she is swamped down in the morgue and isn't around much she always at least shoots her a quick text letting her know what's going on. Granted it's not like they are dating and she has the right to ask the honey blonde to keep her totally informed but her whereabouts but it's something they have both done for quite some time now.

"She's fine, she is just busy and she will call or text you in a bit." The brunette mutters to herself as she makes her away out of the elevator and over to her desk.

"Morning Frost, Korsak." She grumbles and takes a seat at her desk.

"Morning." Both men grumble just as incoherently as Jane. Seems like none of them are getting much sleep.

The brunette takes a look at her phone and frowns. Still no call or text from her best friend. Now the seed of worry is beginning to grow. It's just not like the M.E. to not respond at all, even when a few months back she dropped her phone and shattered it she bought a cheap phone until hers was replaced. She called Jane immediately letting her know. But now, complete silence. Her leg bounces up and down as she goes over the list of people David Jefferson was last in contact with to see if any of them come up dirty.

"Whoa, Jane, easy with knee bobbing you're going to rattle my coffee off my desk." Frost looks over to the brunette and his brow knit together with concern. "Hey partner what's wrong? I know this case is frustrating but you see really uneasy right now."

Korsak looks up from his computer screen and mirrors the younger detectives concern. He has know Jane long enough now to know something isn't right. He also knows if she doesn't want to talk about it she shut them down without a second thought. The only person who has seemed to crack the Jane code was none other than their lovely M.E. If something was bothering Jane, Maura could usually get her to talk it out. Hell recently the brunette even seems to seek out the honey blonde before her thoughts have dragged her so far under. For a split second he had contemplated taking a trip down to the morgue to see if the M.E. knew what was up or if she could talk to other woman.

"Ah, man sorry Frost." She absentmindedly chews on her nails as she runs the background check on the vic's neighbor. "I'm fine, it's just I haven't heard from Maura in a while. And it's making me a little anxious. Have you guys seen or heard from her?" The brunette's knee slows down but does not stop moving entirely, her gut is telling her something is really not right. She can almost hear the honey blonde telling her that you shouldn't make assumptions or rely on your intestines to know when something is right or wrong.

"Nah, haven't seen her." Korsak chimes in.

"Nope me either, last time I saw her was last night on my way out. She was down at the cafe getting some dinner." Frost says, the worried expression still not leaving his face.

"I'm going to run downstairs." The brunette cannot take it anymore, she pushes back from her desk and heads straight for the morgue. She takes a quick look in Maura's office and find the light is on which is usually a good indication that she is at least in the building. The M.E. always make sure to at least turn her lights out before going home. She heads over to the lab and sees Susie looking through a microscope.

"Hey Susie have you seen your boss today?"

"Detective Rizzoli good afternoon. No I haven't actually, but I assume she must be here because her office was open and the lights were on when I got here." The smaller woman looks up from her microscope and frowns when she sees the detective clench her jaw and run her hand over the back of her neck.

"Damn. Okay thanks, if you see her please tell her I am looking for her and to come and find me."

"Will do. Oh hey I got the results from the gravel particulates. Seems they are Portland Limestone and Portland Slag, the dust was the same mixture just a finer concentration."

"Thanks, Susie." With that the detective made her way back upstairs. Once in the elevator she grabs her phone and attempts to call Maura. After five rings it goes to voicemail. "Hey Maur it's me, please give me a call when you get this."

"Alright, something is definitely off. Maura isn't downstairs and no one has actually seen her today." She stomps her way back to her desk and tilts her head at the box sitting in front of her keyboard. "What the hell is this?" She points to the cream box sitting on her desk.

"Dunno, it was just brought up here, someone dropped it off at the front desk." Korsak says with a shrug. "You gonna open it?"

The scars on her palms begin to tingle as she runs a finger along the top of the box. She shakes her head and grits her teeth before pulling the lid up to reveal a small SD card and a note that simple states "Watch Me."

"What the fuck!" She shouts and slides the box over to Frost. Once he looks inside his face falls that nagging feeling they have all felt for the past few days is no longer a inkling its full blown panic at this point.

"Damn." He mutters before looking over at the older detective. "This isn't going to be good. We need to get to BRIC, now."

"What? What is it?" Korsak follow along behind Jane and Frost into BRIC. "Someone care to elaborate?" Jane handed him the box with the note still inside while Frost popped the SD card into the computer.

The monitors go black for a moment before the screen comes to life with a man standing in front of the camera. The room he is standing in is dark with only one small window to the left side of the frame. He is wearing a black ski mask, hoodie and jeans. Even with the ski mask covering his face you can still see the smug smirk. The man begins to speak.

"Hello Jane. I see you have gotten my little present. I have been waiting for this for quite some time now. But I was given specific instructions as to when to start our little game. I have been watching you as you try to desperately grasp at clue about your most recent case. So frustrating when you are outsmarted and there are no clues to be had. It's not for nothing though I will give you the opportunity to give his family some clouser. But that is for another time. Right now I want to discuss this little game was have just begun."

The man steps aside revealing he is not alone in the room. On a chair in the middle of the room sits none other than the Chief Medical Examiner of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Maura Isles. Her hands and feet are bound to the chair, her hair is no longer in those signature honey waves instead it sticks flat to her head and it matted with what Maura would call a reddish brown substance. Her eyes are red and puffy and her mascara is smudged down her cheeks. She does not sit before them in her designer clothes. She is sitting in nothing but a matching pair of emerald green lacy bra and panties. She has several bruises over her torso and there is a wide gash across the top of her left breast.

Jane's mouth hangs open when she sees the image of her best friend on the screen. Her knees buckle and Korsak grabs her arm as assists her into a chair. Both Frost and Jane are fixated on the screen neither one of them can tear their eyes away. Korsak knows this is going to break the brilliant detective. As much as the detective and the M.E. try to push their feelings aside for the sake of their friendship and not wanting to lose the other, he knows how they both feel about one another. Both woman has alluded as much over the years but their fear run deep so both have kept quiet. His eyes go back to the screen when the man in all black begins to speak again.

"You see Jane, you are not the only other player in this little game. I have brought the luscious Dr. Maura Isles to play as well. She has however not been following the rules I have laid before her for this little game so she has had some unfortunate consequences. And speaking of the rules I believe I shall inform you of how this little game is to be played. You have 72 hours to find the lovely Dr. Isles, to save her life. One of you will be dead when this is all over and I am leaving that choice my dear Jane up to you. If you fail to find us before the 72 hours is up I will be forced to kill the doctor. But that's not truly what I want Jane, I want you. If the doctor continues to struggle she will continue to suffer, that part you have no control of but I figured it might give you a little extra incentive. She is a fiery one, when she woke up to me on top of her she put up quite the fight. She even got a few good blows in before I knocked her unconscious again. That is all the information you'll be give Jane, I am sure a fine detective such as yourself will be able to find something to help save,

. Goodbye for now."

"Jane please stay away!" Maura screams, before she can say anything else the man hit her over the head again with the butt of his gun. Her head falls back as the man returns to turn the camera off and the screen goes black.

"Fucking Christ!" Frost is up out of his seat and walks up to Jane who is still just staring at a now black screen. "Jane look at me. Look at me damn it!" He shouts and lifts the brunette's chin so their eyes meet. "We are going to find her, and we are going to get that sick fuck. Do you hear me. We'll find her."


	6. Chapter 6

**Hello again, hope you are enjoy this story as much as I have been enjoying writing it which is why there is a second chapter update today. Once I got started I just couldn't stop. This chapter is also pretty violent, but I promise this story will lighten up.**

 **Still don't own Rizzoli and Isles. Just giving our two favorite ladies a little twist.**

* * *

When the M.E. comes too again there is a dull ache behind her eyes. There is also something warm and sticky dripping from the side of her head and onto her shoulder. Not one to guess but she still makes the definitive conclusion that the latest blow to the head has split her scalp and is bleeding pretty heavy. _I have to get out of here_. _I cannot let this deranged man hurt Jane._ He has already told her numerous times that he wants Jane dead not her, he would settle for the honey blonde if he had to but his target is Jane.

Maura pulls on the restraints to no avail, they are extremely tight near to the point of not allowing adequate blood flow to her extremities. There is also a stinging on her chest just above her left breast. She looks down to see about a four inch deep gash slashed across her creamy skin. A small tear rolls down her cheek. She looks around the small dank room trying to see if there is any possible way out other than the one door. Her eyes grow wide when she hears the locks on the other side of the door strat to click open. _He's back._

"Good evening Dr. Isles. Glad to see you are awake. If you keep pulling little stunts like the one you pulled while I was making the video for Jane, you will continue to suffer at my hand." She walks into the room and squats down in the chair next to honey blonde. He ghosts his hands up and down the sides of her body. "I think you will be happy to know our little game has officially begun. The package was delivered to Jane a few hours ago. Care to guess at how long it takes her to find you?"

"I never guess." She says in the most even tone she can muster.

"Oh come on, it'll be fun." The man in black stands and pulls the knife back out of his pocket. He light presses the tip of the blade to the M.E.'s neck.

"She won't be coming for me. I told her to stay away." She says through gritted teeth. Her hands have a white knuckle grip on the arms of the chair.

"She'll come. It's what she does, especially for you." He stalks around the chair.

"I wouldn't be so sure of that." She takes a quick glance up at her capture.

"Do you want to know why she will come?" Maura continues to look straight ahead not acknowledging the question. "I'm going to tell you anyway. See for a brilliant detective and a genius doctor you two are clueless. I have watched you both for years, ever since Dr. Hoyt asked me to be his proxy should he not be able to finish the job he started. He always takes couples because it's just more fun seeing the terror in the other ones eyes as they watch the one they love most be tortured. And honestly I have never encountered any two people who love each other more than the two of you. And I am dumbfounded as to how you two cannot see what is clearly right in front of you." The blade runs down the honey blonde's right arm, hard enough to leave a small red trail behind.

"Jane does not feel the way you think she does about me." Maura's blood runs cold the moment the man states he is doing this all under the instruction of Hoyt. Both women had put him out of their mind after Jane killed him. She cannot lie about how she feels about Jane and the man is correct in his assessment of her feelings for Jane. But she does not see how he thinks the brunette feels the same. Sure they are together a lot and there are some touches that linger a little too long, but Jane would have said something. _Wouldn't she? Has she felt this way and I was just too scared to lose her to tell her how I feel and see if she feels the same._

"I think you'll find she does. And when she comes for you." She can see the sleaziest smile she has ever seen through the man's ski mask. "I am going to make you watch me kill her."

"Don't you fucking dare touch her! I swear you point one finger on her and I will kill you myself! You want to kill someone take me. I'm right fucking here!" She shouts louder than she ever has in her entire life. She has no clue what has gotten into her but the mention of this foul man killing the person she loves most flipped a switch. She is pulling against the restraints on the arms and legs of the chair so hard she is tearing her own skin. She is positive if the chair weren't bolted to the floor she would have turned herself over.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk Dr. Isles." The back of his hand smack forcefully against her cheek. Before he takes the knife and slashes into her right thigh. "You should know better than to threaten me by now." He stands before giving her a swift kick in the ribs.

The M.E. cannot hold the tears at bay, and with the wind knocked out of her she cannot respond. She is pretty sure she now has at least one cracked rib to go along with the new gash to her thigh and the contusion to her cheek. She watches the man leave and lets herself openly sob as she hears the locks clicking back into place.

* * *

Jane hasn't moved from the chair Korsak set her in an hour ago. She has made Frost replay that video at least a dozen times. Korsak had left to let Lieutenant Cavanaugh what was going on. He told Korsak to take lead on this and that even though Jane shouldn't be involved in this investigation he knows no a single person on this earth will hold her back from finding Maura.

"Cavanaugh wants me to take lead on this one." He holds up his hand as the brunette jumps out of her chair. "Listen, he isn't taking you off this case. He didn't even suggest it, this is a personal attack on you Jane. He knows no one could keep you from finding Maura. So what have we got?"

"The lab results came back and the particulates and dust are a mixture of Limestone and Slag. Susie said they fine mixture indicates it's likely from cement. So we have a long road head. There are hundreds of construction companies and sites throughout the city. She is going to run a more detailed analysis to see the components are part of a specific type of cement and we can then cross reference that to start with."

Jane runs her hands through her hair and turns back to the screen. All she can see is the terror on Maura face and the obvious wounds scattered over her body. What is eating her up right now is know that sick bastard put his hands on her. _Her_ Maura. The one person on this planet she would do anything for. If she could trade places with the woman she loves she would do it in a heartbeat.

"Frost, how's it coming with the video? Anything in the room that can give us an indication of a location?" The brunette places her hands on the desk and bows her head. The tears that threaten to fall are become harder and harder to hold back.

"Janie! Oh my god, I just heard. How are you holding up sweetie?" The Rizzoli matriarch blows past everyone in BRIC, she knows she isn't allowed to be in there but to hell with that. Her baby needs her. She quickly wraps her arms around her daughter.

"Ma." Her voice cracks and when the strong arms of her mother wrap around her she has no choice but to completely crumple. The strong detective shakes uncontrollably and grips the back of her mother's blouse. "I have to find her. I love her, Ma." Her voice is softer than she ever thought possible.

"I know baby, we all love Maura. And you will find her I know you will." Angela rubs Jane's back trying to soothe her daughter. She knows nothing is going to make this okay, nothing she says or does right now will take away the agony her daughter is feeling. They think she is stupid that she doesn't see the small gestures, the lingering touches, how every guy they date is never right. She doesn't say anything because neither women has told her how they truly feel about the other.

Jane pulls herself together enough to release her hold on her mother. "Thanks, Ma. We don't have much to go on at the moment but I think someone needs to call her mother. Is there any."

"Of course, I have Constance's number I will give her a call." Before the detective could finish her mother cut her off. "Do you need anything else?"

"Could you possibly feed Bass and go get Jo Friday from my place?"

"Of course." Angela gave Jane one more quick hug before turning on her heel and leaving.

Jane lets out a shaky breath before standing walking over to stand before the screen. She shakes her head as she takes in the scene before her. _Oh Maura. I will find you, I will fix this. Just hold on a little longer._ She squints at the bottom right corner of the screen up against the desk is what appears to be some sort of flyer.

"Hey Frost can you try and zoom in on the desk?"

"I'll do my best, this isn't the best quality video. It might take me a minute to try and clean the image up. What am I looking for exactly?" Frost types away at the keyboard.

"Not sure exactly, I think I see some paperwork. Maybe it will have a name on it." She chews her bottom lip. _Come on, come on, come on. There has to be something there._

"Damn it!" The younger detective shouts and slams his hands on the desk. "It's too granulated, I can't get it clear enough. We have a limited time, this needs to happen."

"Calm down, I know you are doing everything you can. Look can you like take a screenshot of it and run it through that program thingy you have been working on that scrubs the image?" Her eyes have still yet to leave the image on the screen.

"Yeah, I can do that. I'm sorry Jane. I just hate seeing Maura like that." He squeezes the brunette's shoulder before walking to the smaller computer in the corner of the room. He quickly gets to work.

"I know, me too." Her voice is barely a whisper. "I'm going to go back down to the lab see if Susie has found anything."


	7. Chapter 7

**Hello everyone, thanks for all the wonderful review. It let's me know I am on the right track. I know another update today but I can't help it, this story is literally writing itself. It might not always happen with multiple chapters a day, but I will try to post at least every other day during the week. Again this chapter is a little on the violent side. I promise this will be Rizzles in the end.**

 **As we all know I still do not own Rizzoli and Isles. Thanks for sticking with me this far.**

* * *

Jane paces back and forth in front of the screens in BRIC. They only have two more hours until the deadline is up. She got a call from Frost to come down right away he thinks he found something. The papers on the desk showed no company name, the test on the particulates didn't help much either, what they found is used by hundreds of companies in the area for various things. _Come on Frost where are you?_ As she looks down at her watch the young detective comes through the door.

"Alright, so I have broken down the entire room by 2x2 sections to try and find anything that can give us a location." He quickly starts typing and pulling up images on the screen. Korsak walks in and stand next to Jane giving her shoulder a firm squeeze. "Okay now look at this." The image that pops up is of the wall to the right of Maura and in the center of the wall is faded letters that cannot be made out.

"Frost what are we looking at?" Korsak clenches his jaw and glares at the young detective. They are all on edge and time is running out so playing 20 questions is not the way to go about it.

"Okay, so it looks like there was lettering on the wall at some point and it's now fade. But I ran this image through my new photo enhancer and reverted the image and got this." He clicks away at the keyboard and a new image comes up on the screen. A clear image pops against the inverted coloring of the photo that reads, **Anderson and Sons Construction Co.**

"Oh, thank god." Jane whispers and bows her head before spinning and looking to Frost. "Okay I want an address and I want every person we have. We leave now."

"Whoa, Jane." Korsak grabs her shoulder as she heads to her desk intent on grabbing her vest before going to Maura. "Look I know you want to help and you have done everything you could. But this might be too personal for you. I don't want your emotions to get the best of you and something bad happen to you, Maura or both of you."

"Are you fucking kidding me right now Korsak? Like really fucking kidding me? I am not just staying here. Maura is out there being tortured because of me. I am not going to sit here and hope you guys can get the job done. No it won't happen. You couldn't stop me if I tried, and don't give me that bullshit line of you are lead. I swear I will drop my badge and gun and go in alone if that's what it takes." Her breathing is erratic and the muscles in her arms flex every time she clenches her fists. There is no way in hell she is staying.

"Calm down Jane. We all know how much you care about Maura. I just don't want anyone else getting hurt okay?" He steps up to her looking her dead in the eyes to make sure she is really listening to what he is telling her. "If you come you listen to me, you follow my every instruction. And you are not to just burst through the doors the second we pull up. You wait until we have the all clear to enter. Got it?" Jane tries to protest but the older detective throws a hand up. "Got it?"

"Yeah okay, I got it. Frost how's it coming on an address?" She nervously rubs her scars as she looks to the screen.

"Okay so Anderson and Sons has two locations on in the city and one about 45 minutes east of here. I'm sorry Jane, the location to the east has to be the one. It went into foreclosure three years ago." Frost heart sinks as he looks at the clock. Even if they left right this second they may not make it before the 72 hours is up.

"Then we need to go. Now!" Jane runs to her desk and grabs her vest and windbreaker. She doesn't even wait for the elevators instead she takes the stairs two at a time and is out in the car before the others even walk out of the building. _Hurry up, hurry up. We don't have time to waste._

Korsak gives the brunette a disapproving look before sliding into the passenger seat and Frost climbs in the back. Before he even has a chances to get the door closed Jane puts the car in park and takes off.

* * *

It's been nearly three days since she has been taken and Maura isn't sure she can take much more. The man in black gets more agitated with each passing moment. And when Maura told him the last time Jane wasn't coming to just kill her, he snapped. She remembers him stabbing her left thigh and slashing her stomach. And the last thing she remembers before everything went black was his boot connecting to the side of her head.

This truly wasn't how she pictured her life would go. After meeting Jane it took a whole two months before she fell hopelessly in love with her best friend. If only she had had the courage to tell Jane, maybe things would have turned out a little differently. Sure her capture probably would have still taken her but she would have at least had Jane before she died.

Her eyes well with tears as her heart breaks for the brunette. She knows Jane isn't in love with her but she does care about her a great deal, and she knows she won't handle this well. She tried to fight and do everything to escape on her own but the bindings on her wrists and legs were just too tight. Her wrist have gashes in them from her struggling against the ropes. What she wouldn't give for just a little more time. She is more than exhausted apart from the times she was knocked unconscious she hasn't slept at all. She hears the all too familiar sounds of the locks being undone. She does her best to calm herself down, she does manage to steady her breathing but the tears continue to flow freely down her cheeks.

The man in black has entered the room once more but this time without the ski mask. Maura knows that probably a bad sign but she tries to remain calm.

"Well Dr. Isles our little game is almost up. It's a shame that Jane didn't decide to play along. Maybe I was wrong in my assessment, but my gut still thinks she will show up eventually." He smirks and stalks around the room. He leans up to peer out the window to see if anyone has shown up, much to his dismay there is not a single car or person insight. The man bends down next to Maura and whispers into her ear. "I have something to show you."

He walks around and stands in front of the M.E. He slowly pulls to shiny objects out of his pocket. He holds up the scalpels for Maura to see. And when she gasps and her eyes grow wide he chuckles.

"I feel like this is a little added touch for the good detective when they find you." He says.

"Please, you don't have to do this. Just kill me and get it over with. I promise that will be enough of a message to Jane." Her voice cracks and her breathing becomes labored. She watches as the man examines the scalpels, he runs his thumb across the blade and when he lifts it a faint red line appears. Maura whimpers and closes her eyes.

"Nope. You open your eyes Dr. Isles you need to watch this. You get to see what Dr. Hoyt did to claim Jane." He grabs her chin roughly and shakes her head. "I said open them!"

"Please don't." Her voice is thick emotion as she opens her eyes.

"Good girl." He stands back and slams a scalpel through the middle of Maura's right hand. She shrieks and struggles against the restraints. He waits a few seconds before repeating the same process on her left hand. This time she opens her mouth to scream but nothing comes out, it's just a soundless sob.

She finally stops struggling against the restraints as her body begins to shake uncontrollably. Maura knows her body is going into shock and there is nothing she can do about it. Everything begins to get a little dark around the edges. The ringing in her ears is deafening. She has thought for years about the pain Jane must have endured at the hands of Hoyt. Jane has told her time and time again, no one knows how it feels to have scalpels driven through their hands. There is a faint smile on her face as she realizes she now knows exactly how it feels.

The man takes a few steps back to admire his handy work. It's true Hoyt told him to only kidnap her and kill her only if Jane failed to get her in time. But this was a little added bonus for his own sick pleasure. He glances at his watch and smiles.

"Look at the time Dr. Isles." He laughs and mockingly shows the honey blonde his watch. "Guess Jane isn't as good of a detective as Dr. Hoyt thought."

He reaches into the waistband of his pants and pulls the gun out. He points it directly at Maura's chest. He continues to stare at his watch. He then grips the gun with two hands. Just as he pulls the trigger he hears the gun go off and someone screaming.

"No!" Jane throws herself at the man and tackles him to the ground.

* * *

 **I am so sorry for leaving off on a major cliffhanger. Please don't hold it against me.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Wow, okay so when I started writing this I honestly wasn't quite sure how it would go over. But I am so glad you all are enjoying it so far. I know everything is a little tense at the moment, but have no fear it does lighten up in the end. I love all the review and messages, they help keep me motivated. All I can say is this story is all but writing itself, I sit down at my laptop and my fingers go and the next chapter just appears. Thank you all again for coming this far on the journey with me. Hope you enjoy this next chapter.**

* * *

Chapter 7

 _He reaches into the waistband of his pants and pulls the gun out. He points it directly at Maura's chest. He continues to stare at his watch. He then grips the gun with two hands. Just as he pulls the trigger he hears the gun go off and someone screaming._

" _No!" Jane throws herself at the man and tackles him to the ground._

* * *

Korsak and Frost are right at Jane's heels. The rush over to Jane in time to see her smash the man's face with the butt or her gun. Frost kneels on the man's shoulder and slips cuffs around his wrist.

"Jane go check Maura, we got this." Frost says.

"Looks like you are a minute to late Jane." The man in black says before erupting into a fit of laughter.

"Shut the fuck up or I'll shoot you myself." Korsak spits.

Jane rushes to Maura's side. And quickly cuts the ropes that bind her. Tears sting the brunette's eyes as she gets her first up close look of the M.E. who is slumped in the chair. Jane brushes the hair out of Maura's face as she applies pressure to the gunshot wound in her left shoulder.

"Come on Maura, you gotta wake up now. It's all over, baby please don't do this to me. Please." She pleads with the honey blonde.

Jane takes the in the entire sight before her. Her eyes wander over the deep gash over Maura's breast and her thighs. A guttural scream rips through the air. The sight of Maura's hands being pinned to the chair with a pair of scalpels is just too much. The brunette now knows exactly why this happened. _Hoyt, that son of a bitch is still haunting me from the fucking grave._

She keeps pressure on the bullet wound but doesn't know what else to do. Does she try to remove the scalpels? Her heart has literally split in two. Seeing her best friend in this state knowing it is all because of her and the sick bastard who gets his jollies off messing with the things she cares for most. At one time she would have bet the person Hoyt would have taken would have been Frankie. Until this very moment she didn't even realize the person she cared for most and would do anything for was Maura. Yes she loved her best friend but it was more than that she is in love with the honey blonde M.E. And right this second she would do anything to trade places with her.

"Jane?" Maura mumbles before losing consciousness.

Jane cannot hear Frost telling the paramedics where they are. When the paramedics arrive they try to tell Jane to move, but she isn't hearing it. The only she on her mind right now is Maura and everything else is just background noise.

"Jane, you gotta let go. They're here to help her." Korsak says as the physically removes Jane from the M.E.'s side. She fights against him the whole time. "You have to let them do their job."

"Let me go!" She screams as she fights against the older detectives arms.

Frost has already left the room with the man and places him in the squad car. Jane can no longer stop the tears from falling. She watches as the paramedics load Maura onto the stretcher. There is no way in hell she will ever be able to get the image of Maura bloody and bruised with scalps in her hands out of her head. She begins to tremble as Korsak leads her out of the building.

"I'm going with her. I don't care what anyone says." She breaks free from Korsak and runs up to the ambulance and hops right in. The paramedics tell her she can only ride with them if she stays out of the way. She simply nods and sits on the bench next to the stretcher. She watches as they hook her up with an IV and start pumping her full of fluids.

Maura never regains consciousness. The trip to the hospital seems like it's taking days. Jane bows her head and let's the tears fall. The ambulance pulls to a stop and Jane's head snaps up and rushes after paramedics rushing the M.E. into the emergency room. She watches as a team of nurses and doctors swarm the gurnee and disappear behind a set of doors. Jane runs to catch up with them when security office step in her way. The brunette sees red.

"Get the hell out of my way!" She tries to side step the man to the right and then the left. For a split second the thought of pulling out her gun and shooting him flashed through her mind but that wouldn't help anything.

"No, ma'am I am sorry but you will have to go back out to the waiting room. Someone will be with you shortly." He points in the vague direction of the waiting room. But the detective doesn't budge. She reaches for her badge on her hip and waves it in his face.

"Detective Jane Rizzoli, Boston Homicide! Now get out of my way!" Jane's nostrils flare and her jaw clenches when she sees the security officer not even flinch.

"I'm sorry I cannot let you through." He stand firm in front of the door and crosses his arms over his chest.

"Jane!" Korsak shouts as he and Frost come running up to her. "What's going on, where's Maura?"

"I don't know this brute won't let me through to go to her." Tears began to well in her eyes once again as her mind begins to play all the likely scenarios play in her mind. She never got the chance to tell Maura how she really felt. She runs her hand through her unruly curls and kicks the wall next to the security officer.

"I'm sorry fellas you're just going to have to go wait in the waiting room like everybody else." The officer says in the most monotone voice humanly possible.

"Alright Jane, let's go sit down." Frost tries to easy over to the brunette and get her to follow to the waiting area.

"Hell no! Where is a nurse or a doctor!" She shouts as she rounds the other side of the wall where the admitting desk is. A short blonde nurse steps from behind the desk.

"Honey, I'm going to need you to calm down." The nurse takes in the detectives appearance and furrows her brow, with all the blood covering the detective she knows she needs something happened to one of their own. "Why don't you all come with me to a private room just over here. Who is it that you are here with?" She ushers the three detectives into a small 10x10 conference room just off to the right of the main waiting area.

"Dr. Maura Isles, the Chief Medical Examiner of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. She was.." The brunette cannot make herself say it, she stand before the small nurse like a deer caught in the headlights.

"Okay, I will go check and see if there is any news. Are any of you family or her emergency contact?"

"No we aren't family, I mean well we are all sort of family but not in the legal sense." Jane chokes out.

"Detective Rizzoli is Dr. Isles' emergency contact." Korsak says softly and helps the brunette take a seat.

"What? How do you know that?" Jane looks over to the older detective with confusion on her face.

"She updated some of her personnel file a year or so ago. Cavanaugh wasn't in and as Sergeant I was able to sign off on them." The nurse nods and walks out of the room leaving them in silence.

 _Why didn't she ever tell me I was her emergency contact?_ Jane's mind reels. She looks down at her hands for the first time since she has arrived at the hospital and stops dead in her tracks. She isn't one to be squeamish, that's Frost's job, but her stomach flips. _This is Maura's blood._ She doesn't even notice when Angela enters the room. Frost had called her on their way to the hospital and told her she needed to be there for Jane.

"Janie, sweetheart? Why don't we go get you cleaned up." The Rizzoli matriarch is crouch next to the brunette's chair. When she gets no response she gently places her hand on her daughter's forearm. "Jane, let's go get you cleaned up okay?" Her voice cracks betraying her true feelings. She is supposed to be the strong one, the one to help Jane through this. Knowing how the detective and the M.E. truly feel about one another and seeing her daughter sitting before her in the other woman's blood chips away a piece of her heart.

Jane looks up into her mother's eyes when she places her hand on her forearm. "Oh, Ma." She can't continue she reaches out and pulls her mother into a bone crushing hug. It wasn't until the PA system bluttered out a "Code Blue to the ER." that Jane lets go. She has been around Maura and her Google Mouth long enough to know that is when a patient crashes. She bolts out of her seat and heads for the door.


	9. Chapter 9

**Hello all, hope you've enjoyed the story so far. I promise this chapter doesn't leave off with a major cliffhanger. I know some part of Jane are going to seem a little OOC for her but this is just my take on how it could have been and how I am giving a little extra something to the characters I am barrowing.**

 **Still sadly I do not own Rizzoli and Isles. Just taking them on a little ride.**

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Hearing the overhead page Jane bolts towards the door as the short blonde nurse pulls the door open. The brunette nearly kicked the smaller woman to the ground.

"What's going on can I see Maura. I know what a code blue is Maura told me what it was when we were waiting once." Jane's eyes a wild and she doesn't even realize she still has her hands on the nurse's shoulder.

"Detective Rizzoli, please." The nurse gently removes the brunette's hands from her shoulder and walks in the room. "Why don't you all have a seat." Everyone in the room had risen as the nurse opened the door. Everyone except Jane took as seat as instructed by the nurse.

"Janie, please sit." Angela pleads with her daughter.

"No way, I want to see Maura. Now!" She shouts through gritted teeth. She looks to the nurse. "Please just tell me, tell me she is okay and I can see her now." The brunette knows better than to think she will actually be about to go to her best friend right now.

"I'm sorry.." The nurse begins but is cut off.

"Don't, don't you dare." Jane's voice cracks and she falls back against table. Her eyes plead with the nurse.

"I'm sorry, you cannot see Dr. Isles, she has been taken into surgery. She has suffer some severe head trauma which resulted in a subdural hematoma. She also has three broken ribs, numerous contusions, she has a three large gashes that will require extensive suturing, the bullet wound to her shoulder was a through and through which didn't cause a ton of damage to surrounding tissue and missed her clavicle by only a few millimeters and she has a stab wound through both hands. Detective Rizzoli are you alright? Do you need some water? Why don't you sit down." All the color in the brunette's face completely drains and she has begun to shiver. The nurse doesn't even need to take a step towards the brunette because the two male detectives have sat her down in the nearest chair.

"Uh, no. How..how bad is this? Is she going to be okay?" Jane's voice is barely a whisper. She subconsciously rubs at the scars on her hands.

"It's not good. There is a team of surgeons working on her right now. Right now their main focus is on the subdural hematoma and her hands. Her ribs have not presses against her lungs or any internal organs which is a good thing. They will work to repair her shoulder and suture her wounds once she is stable. Right now things are critical. I know you are the only person listed on her emergency contact form, but if she has any family I would suggest you notify them to come down immediately. Someone will be in to keep you updated as often as possible, but this isn't going to be quick. I would suggest you all try and get some rest in here if you can. This room is yours for as long as you need." The nurse shakes hands with the two male detectives and the older Rizzoli. She gives Jane's shoulder a firm squeeze before taking her leave.

"I don't know if I can do this." Jane's voice cracks and she buries her head in her hands. Nothing in the world makes any sense right now. _This isn't right, it should be me laying on the operating table clinging to life. Not Maura, never Maura._ She feels a hand gently rubbing her back which brings her back to the present. She looks up with puffy red eyes to find everyone in the room has left except her mother.

"Janie, why don't I take you home to get cleaned up? We can get something to eat and come right back. You heard the nurse this is going to be a long wait. You don't want to go see Maura when she wakes up looking like this do you?" The matriarch continues to rub soothing circles on her daughter's back wishing desperately she could somehow take away her pain.

"See me like what, Ma? With her own blood all over me? I am not leaving, I don't care what you want me to do or what you think is best. I am staying here. Go to my place pick up a change of clothes if it will make you feel better but I stay here." She stands up and begins pacing as the nurses words roll over and over in her mind. Maura has explained some medical terminology so she knows that bleeding on the brain is a very serious deal and coupled with all of her other injuries has made her critical. "She is my life, I will not leave until.." She can't speak the words. She will stay here until the M.E. is release whether that is a medical discharge or release to her her own morgue for a final autopsy.

"Oh, Janie." Angela takes a step towards her daughter but stops dead in her track when Jane spins around and holds a hand out to stop her from moving towards her. It breaks her heart to see her daughter in so much pain.

"No, don't you dare. Just leave." The brunette turns her back on her mother as she is once again lost in her own personal hell, that is her mind.

* * *

A little over four hours after she left the hospital Angela arrives back in the conference room with a duffle bag full of clothes and a tray of lasagna she heated up. She is greeted by Frost and Korsak who take the bag and food and set them on the table. The older Rizzoli looks over to where her daughter is seated in the corner with her head bowed, her eyes closed and her hands folded. If she didn't know any better she'd say Jane was praying.

"How long has she been like that?" She asks the two male detectives.

"Since before we came back. We tried to talk to her but she isn't hearing us. Every once in awhile she will mutter something under breath but if we ask if she needs something or what she said we get no response." Frost says as he gives the matriarchs hand a gentle squeeze.

"I've never seen her like this before. It's like the thing that makes Jane, Jane, is gone. Do you want us to give you two a moment? Maybe you can get her to at least hear you or talk to you?" The older detective says in a hushed tone. Not that he thinks Jane can actually hear him but he doesn't know what else to do.

"Yeah, thanks guys. Would you go to the nurses station and see if they would allow her to get a shower in one of the rooms? I am going to get her to at least take a shower even if I have to drag her in there myself." Angela hugs each of the men as they depart from the room before kneeling in front of her daughter.

"Jane, sweetheart can you look at me?" She says softly as she places two fingers under the detectives chin and raises her head to look at her. It takes a few moments but Jane's eyes finally open. "That's my beautiful girl. I brought you some clothes and something to eat."

"I can't even think about eating right now." She looks at her mother as if she just sprouted four heads. _Eat really? How can she even think I could possible want to eat right now. My heart is shredded and she wants me to eat?_

"Alright then, how about a shower. Vince went to go see if one of the nurses could get you a room to take a quick shower in. How does that sound?" Before she can even finish her sentence both men return.

"The nurse said the last room to the left has a shower you could use. Jane go get yourself cleaned up, if there is any word about Maura your mother will come get you immediately." The older detective says. He breathes a small sigh of relief as he walks in and sees Jane is actually sitting up and looking at them.

The brunette doesn't even speak she just gets up and grabs the duffle bag and heads out the door. She makes a right and follow the short hallway to the end and enters the small shower stall. She places the bag on the bench and locks the door. Opening the bag she finds shower gel, shampoo and conditioner. She starts the shower and begins to undress. When the small room has filled with steam she steps under the hot stream and closes the curtain.

Jane openly sobs under the running water hoping the sound is muffled by the running wate. It takes about fifteen minutes before she has exhausted all the tears her body has. She picks up the soap and begins to scrub. She scrubs her face, her arms, her stomach, every inch of her body she can reach until she has scrubbed herself raw. She quickly finishes her shower by shampooing and conditioning her hair. Her mind must be playing tricks on her because she swears she still sees the water running off her body having a pinkish tint. There is no possible way there is any more of the honey blonde woman's blood on her but she still sees it.

Turning off the shower she quickly dries off her body and throws on a pair of black yoga pants and a BPD t-shirt. She doesn't bother keeping her soiled clothes on her way back to the conference room she tosses them in a biohazard bin she sees at the end of the hall.

When she walks through the door to their makeshift headquarters she realizes she has been gone for over an hour. She drops the bag next to the table and takes a seat. She can feel their pairs of eyes on her.

"Have they come with an update?" Her voice is hoarse from the sobbing she did while in the shower.

"No, nothing yet. I was going to wait a little longer before trying to round up a nurse or someone who can get us some information." Korsak says from the far end of the table.

"Why don't you eat.." Frost is cut off by the brunette's hand in the air.

"Will you all please stop telling me I need to eat! The only thing I need right now is to see Maura!" Jane doesn't mean to yell, she knows they are just trying to help. All of their nerves are shot but that isn't making anything any easier.

They all fall into silence. No one wants to do or say anything that will set Jane off. The longer they sit there the more anxious they all feel. Frost is sitting at the table messing with his phone. Angela is sitting as close as Jane will allow reading a book. Well, more like absentmindedly flipping the pages off the book. She is mostly watching Jane. Korsak sits in the far corner much like Jane when they arrived, his head bowed and his hands folded. Jane however is staring at the clock, her leg is bouncing so fast her thigh is burning.

* * *

Seven hours after the small blonde nurse came in and let them know what was going on there was a knock on the door. Jane shot out of her chair but did not move a step towards the door. The other three slowly got out of their chairs and walked around the table. A tall gray hair man walked through the door.

"Good morning, my name is Dr. Paxton. Are you the family of Dr. Maura Isles?" Once through the door he extends his hand towards the brunette.

"Yes. How's is she? Can I see her now?" Jane takes his hand and gives it a firm shake before letting her hand fall to her side. She doesn't like that she cannot read the expression on the doctors face. She knows doctors deal with life and death on a daily basis and they are schooled in keeping their expressions neutral. But that doesn't make her feel any better.

"Please have a seat." He takes a seat as well sitting directly in front of the female detective. The nurse had told him prior that she is the one that is on the emergency contact form.

"Just say it." Jane says through clenched teeth. Seeing the surgeon take a seat in her mind means only bad things. She clenches her fists and tries to keep her chin from quivering.

"Dr. Isles is out of surgery. We were able to remove the hematoma from her brain and it appears the damage is minimal. A plastic surgeon sutured the numerous lacerations covering her body. As the nurse told you before the bullet was a through and through, and didn't do a lot of damage because of how high up it was. The head of orthopedic surgery here is a world renowned specialist in hand surgery was called in to perform the surgery on her hands. One of her flexor tendons in her left hand was nicked by the blade and her right hand hand no tendon damage at all. He was able to repair the small tare and closed the wounds. She was very lucky in that regard. His biggest concern right now is about infection. But we have started her on a high dose antibiotic. Right now Dr. Isles remains in critical condition. She is being transferred to a private room up on the ICU floor. It will be another few hours before anyone will be allowed to see her. And right now we ask that only one of you go."

"Me! I'll go, I'll do whatever you say as long as you let me see her." Jane pleads.

"That's fine you can be the one. Right now it's all a waiting game. When she wakes up we will know more about the extent of her brain injury. We are going to keep her heavily sedated for the remainder of the day to give her body a chance to heal. When you are in pain you tend to tense up and your heart rate and BP also rise, so keeping her sedated will allow her body time to rest and heal. She isn't out of the woods yet but she has made it this far. She's a fighter. If you'll excuse me I want to go up and check on Dr. Isles she should be up in her room. A nurse will be down in a little while to bring you up." The surgeon stands and extends his hand once again the female detective.

"Thank you so much." Is all Jane can choke out as she shakes the man hand.

After the door clicks closed behind the surgeon everyone apart from Jane breathed a sigh of relief. Jane however hit her knees and sobbed. When he walked in she was sure he was about to tell them Maura was gone. The relief knowing she was still holding on and fighting to stay alive had overloaded the female detective. Angela was quickly at Jane's side hugging her and kissing the side of her head.

"She going to be okay Janie." The older Rizzoli said with a shaky voice.

"That's not exactly what he said." Jane panted out. She is on the very of hyperventilating, her shoulders are heaving so hard that her mother is having a hard time holding on.

"Maura is a fighter, she'll get through this. I know she will." Angela continued to hold Jane as she wept until she had exhausted herself completely. The brunette is now slumped against her mother, while Angela continues is rub her back.

When Jane fell apart the two male detectives decided to give the two women some privacy. They have both worked with Jane long enough to know she wouldn't want them to see her like that. Hell, she wouldn't have wanted them to see anything she had been going through over the last four days since the M.E. was taken.

A little while later the men returned to find Jane sitting in a chair at the table pushing a piece of lasagna around her plate. They all made small talk around Jane but she never really joined in. She would look to the door every few minutes waiting for them to come take her to Maura.

Four hours after the surgeon came in to give them an update there was another knock on the door and the same short blonde nurse from the night before walked through the door.

"Detective Rizzoli, you can come with me." The nurse says.

Jane sprinted out of the door and was a quarter of the way down the hall before she realized the nurse was trying to keep up. She slowed down and allowed the nurse to lead the way to fourth floor, to room 433.

"She is still heavily sedated but you can go in. Talk to her, I like to think even when they are under they can still hear us." She offers up a small smile before pushing the door open and ushering Jane through. As Jane steps through the door the nurse closes it behind her to give them privacy.

"Maura." The name falls from Jane's lips barely above a whisper.

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 **I love receiving all your comments and messages please keep them coming. I know this chapter is a bit long but I wanted to make sure I moved the story forward but still gave enough detail for the story to come to life. Hope you enjoyed this latest chapter.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Hello all. All I have to say is wow**! **I am so humbled by all of the positive review and messages about this little story. Seems like everyone likes the longer more detailed chapters, so from here on out I am going to do my best to keep up with popular demand.**

 **I do not own Rizzoli and Isles. Just had a story idea one night and it has come to life. Hope you all enjoy the latest chapter.**

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Chapter 9

 _Four hours after the surgeon came in to give them an update there was another knock on the door and the same short blonde nurse from the night before walked through the door._

" _Detective Rizzoli, you can come with me." The nurse says._

 _Jane sprinted out of the door and was a quarter of the way down the hall before she realized the nurse was trying to keep up. She slowed down and allowed the nurse to lead the way to fourth floor, to room 433._

" _She is still heavily sedated but you can go in. Talk to her, I like to think even when they are under they can still hear us." She offers up a small smile before pushing the door open and ushering Jane through. As Jane steps through the door the nurse closes it behind her to give them privacy._

" _Maura." The name falls from Jane's lips barely above a whisper._

* * *

Jane clenches her fists and her jaw as she looks upon the figure in the bed. The person lying before her has gauze wrapped around her head, a huge deep bluish purple bruise under her left eye, both hands are wrapped with gauze as well and there are a number of wires sticking out of the hospital gown leading to the monitors on the wall. _This can't be Maura, they must have made a mistake._ The brunette's mind tries to ease her into the situation. She makes a few steps over to the bed and looks down at the woman lying before her. The woman's skin is gray, her hair is a dull blonde and she seems so small.

After about ten minutes of just staring at Jane finally allowed herself to truly see the person lying in the hospital bed before her. It was Maura, the brunette has spent enough time over the years staring at this woman to not know those lips, the spacing between her eyes, the slope of her nose. The confirmation hits the detective like a ton of bricks. She feels utterly helpless, she would give anything to just be able to hold the M.E.'s hand. But that son of a bitch has taken that from her too.

"Maura, I am so, so sorry. This is all my fault, I never meant for you to ever get hurt. I didn't know by you being my best friend you would have a target on your back. I'm so sorry." She says softly as she looks over the rail of the bed. The brunette takes a shaky breath before leaning down and lightly pressing her lips to Maura's forehead. "I love you, please come back to me." She whispers.

The detective stand and retrieves the chair from the corner of the room and pulls it right next to the bed. She is not sure if she is allowed to or not but that doesn't stop her from carefully lowering the rail of the bed. She takes a seat in the chair and chews on her cheek nervously as she gently lays her hands one Maura's forearm, that seems to be the only place on the honey blonde's body that hasn't been damaged. Jane gasps at the initial contact. She is used to Maura being so warm and full of life, but now she is cold to the touch. Jane lays her head down next to Maura's arm, she turns her head and sobs silently into the room.

After the brunette has exhausted all her tears she turns her head back to look over at her best friend. Her thumb rubs over Maura's forearm, she barely uses any pressure to ensure she doesn't hurt the honey blonde. The monitor on the wall beeps steadily in the background. The brunette have been alone in the room for a little over two hours and Maura still hasn't moved, she hasn't said anything. Jane knows that they are keeping Maura sedated for a while it doesn't stop her from wanting, no needing to see those beautiful hazel eyes and hear that soft voice. She takes a deep breath and picks her head up, wiping away the few tears that begun to fall again.

"Maura, I don't know if you can hear me. And I am sure you'd be spouting off a whole lot of Google Mouth at me right now about whether or not it is actually possible. The nurse that brought me up to you told me that talking to you would help and that you might be able to hear me. So here it goes, you have no idea how long I have wanted to tell you this. And I know I have no right to even be telling you this because you are here because of me. God, I am so sorry." She sniffles and continues to rub Maura's arm.

"You aren't even awake and I can barely tell you. I don't ever want to lose you and I am afraid what I am about to say will change our friendship forever. I love you Maura. No, I didn't say that right. I am in love with you Maura Isles. I don't even know when it happened. I think when I was careless and shot myself to save Frankie and I woke up that night and saw you asleep in the chair next to me. Holding my hand." Tears stream down her cheeks and her voice waivers. "You never knew I woke up that night. But even in my drugged up state I managed to stay awake for for a whole five minutes and I stared at you. I brushed a stray strand of hair behind your ear and when my hand brushed your cheek you nuzzled against it. That's when I knew, I was hopelessly in love with you. And I need you to come back to me, please. And I promise I will grow a pair of balls and tell you, you just have to come back to me first." Jane stands and places another gentle kiss on Maura's forehead before sitting back down and resting her head next to the honey blonde's arm. Not long after resting her head the brunette's eyes close.

* * *

Four hours after Jane drifted off to sleep the surgeon knocks on the door. The brunette shoots out of her chair and her hand instantly goes to her belt for her gun. Her eyes go wide when she comes up empty handed. But she breathes a sigh of relief when the man walks through the door.

"Good morning Detective Rizzoli." He says and extends his hand, which the brunette takes and gives a firm shake.

"Good morning Dr. Paxton. Is everything alright? Is Maura okay?" She turns back to look at the M.E.

"I'm here to do a quick exam. She did surprisingly well overnight, her vitals stayed stable which is quite a great development." He leans over the bed and uses his pen light to check Maura's eyes. He pulls the front of her gown down and checks the stitches before covering her back up. He turns to the detective.

"Is.." Jane says as her voice cracks.

"She is making progress, I think that we can start weaning her off the sedatives. It will take a few hours but if and it's a big if, there is no lasting neurological damage. She could wake up sometime this evening or tomorrow morning. I'm going to go ahead and let the nurses know that two of you can be in here at a time. I have come to realize you are not leaving this room until she wakes up. And I also know there are many others that would like to visit."

"Thank you." Is all Jane can manage before turning and taking a seat.

A new nurse comes in can switches out her I.V. bag and leaves without saying a word. Jane is thankful to everyone here. They all seem to know that she is in no mood for ideal chit chat. Throughout the day Korsak, Frost and her mother have come up to check up on Maura and try to get Jane to go and get some fresh air. She quickly dismissing their ideas, her mother is the last to leave. She gives her daughter a kiss on the top of her head. Jane settles in her chair as she had the night before.

* * *

Maura squints, there is a light above over. She tries to move her head but a pain shoots through her skull. She looks down and the first thing she sees is a mane of unruly raven curls covering her right arm. She can't help but smile when she catches sight of her best friend. She looks around to gather her surroundings. She doesn't remember being brought here, she remembers being taken. The last thing she remembers is her attacker pointing his gun at her and Jane rushing through the door and everything going black. It's dark outside the windows and she isn't sure how long she has been here.

"J.." Maura attempts to speak but her mouth and throat is so dry. She desperately needs to get the detectives attention. She clears her throat and moves the arm that Jane is lying besides.

The brunette feels something rubbing against her cheek. Her head pops up and her eyes fill with tears when she sees hazel eyes staring back down at her. She inhales sharply before standing and going to the head of the bed.

"Hey, how are you feeling? Do I need to get a doctor?" Jane's voice is thick with emotion and she cannot stop the tears from falling.

"No, water?" Is all the M.E. can get out. Jane quickly reaches in the bag her mother brought her earlier and retrieve a bottle of water. She opens the cap and gently presses the bottle to Maura's lips and tilts it allowing to get a small sip.

"Maura, I am so glad you ca..you are awake." She smiles through her tears and she is conflicted as to whether she should tell her best friend how she feels. She has been through so much and she doesn't want to give her more stress to deal with.

"Thank you. You saved my life." Maura's voice is hoarse and seeing Jane's tears causes tears to well in her own eyes. She cannot take her eyes off of the detective, her best friend, the woman who saved her. Her mind begins to race with everything she told herself she would tell Jane if she ever got out of that place. Her current physical pain is nothing compared to the emotional pain she would be put through if Jane left because she admitted her true feelings. Jane made up Maura's mind for her when she leaned over the bed and gently kissed her cheek.

"Maura, I'm in love with you." Jane whispers. The moment Maura's hazel eyes met her own she knew there was no way she could waste anymore time. She needed to state her true feelings, she needed to take that chance. It was now or never for Jane. she has spent the last few years trying to fight and hide her feelings. She didn't think it was right to fall in love with her best friend. But maybe that's the beauty of it. But maybe it will be her undoing. She pulls back to look her best friend in the eyes and to try and gauge her reaction to Jane's confession.

Maura's mouth drops open and her breath hitches as she hears the brunette whisper in her ear. Jane pulls away from her cheek and Maura swears she is staring straight into her soul. If she wasn't feeling so sore and slightly high from the medication she would have wrapped her arms around the detective before she could have pulled away.

"Oh my god Jane." She barely gets her words out before Jane takes a step back from the bed.

"I'm sorry Maura, I know I shouldn't feel like this and you don't feel the same about me. And.." Jane rambles on before she is cut off my the honey blonde.

"Shut up Jane. You wouldn't let me finish. Will you please let me finish?" Maura asks and Jane simply nods. Her throat is still terribly dry and nods towards the bottle and Jane automatically brings the bottle back to her lips. She smiles at the small gesture that has been a staple in their friendship for so long now. One of them needs something and the other just knows. No words are even required, it's why they work so well together.

"Like I was trying to say. I am in love with you too. I have been for quite some time now. And from your ramblings it seems our fears were the same. I was always too scared to tell you for fear of losing my best friend. I need you in my life Jane." Maura's voice cracks and she tries to sit up in the bed but the brunette stops her.

"No, please lay back you need rest. If you insist I will raise the head of the bed." When the honey blonde nods Jane grabs the little remote hanging on the side rail and raises the bed a few inches. "We have a lot to talk about, but please I need you to rest. I need you to be okay. I'm not going anywhere. Will you please try and get some sleep?"

"Will you please hug me? I really, really need you Jane. I was so scared and all I could think about was you."

"I don't want to hurt you Maura." The detective says softly.

"You won't, you couldn't." With great effort Maura raises and opens her arms.

Jane steps closer to the bed and lightly wraps her arms around Maura. Both women close their eyes and hold on to one another for what could have been days for all they cared. Nothing else mattered, this was a long time coming and neither were in a rush to let go. Jane was the first to pull back, seeing the tears stream down Maura's cheeks breaks her heart. She gently wipes them away with her thumbs.

"Will you please lay back and try to go to sleep. I am not leaving your side I promise." Jane smiles and takes her seat this time she pulls it closer to the head of the bed.

Maura relents, she still has a good amount of drugs in her system plus the slight pain she feels, added with the emotional revelations they just shared have proven too much. She settles back against her pillows and closes her eyes.

Jane sits in her chair rubbing the M.E's arm softly, once she is sure Maura has fallen asleep she lays her head down on the bed and drifts off to sleep as well.

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 **Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I promised Rizzles would happen but I do apologize for how long it took. As always please leave me a review and let me know what you all think.**


	11. Chapter 11

**I am absolutely blow away by how well this story is being received. I want to thank everyone for the lovely messages and review. This truly is the little story that could. this chapter is a little bit fluffy but I think it's a nice change from all of the angst. There is a big snow storm headed my way so if I don't get a chapter up tomorrow or Saturday it will be a safe bet that my power went out. Thank you all for your patience in advance.**

 **Again I do not own Rizzoli and Isles. Just love the characters and thought I might take them out for a spin.**

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Jane begins to shift as she wakes up, her eyes fly open she hears a hiss. The first thing she sees upon opening her eyes is Maura pressed back against her pillows with her eyes tightly shut and a grimace on her face. The brunette's heart is racing as she shoots out of her chair.

"Maura, what's wrong baby?" Jane says softly as she leans over the bed.

"It hurts. It hurts. It hurts." The honey blonde's body shivers from the pain.

"I'll go get the nurse." Jane runs out of the room. She turns with a nurse in tow in less than two minutes. "Help her!" She shouts at the how is checking Maura's I.V. and the monitor on the wall.

"I'm going to need you to calm down or you'll have to leave." The nurse says.

"Like hell I will!" Jane's blood is boiling, why is this incompetent woman not helping.

"Dr. Isles, can you open your eyes for me?" She grabs her stethoscope and places it under the top of Maura's gown. "Can you tell me what hurts?" The nurse speaks softly as she removes the instrument and drapes it around her neck.

Maura whimpers and continues to shivers, the pain running through her is nothing like she has ever felt before. She knew the drugs last night were working great but she never expected it to feel like this.

"Maura, baby, please. Just tell us what hurts so we can help." Jane says softly trying to will the soothing tones to help ease the M.E's pain. It breaks her heart to see Maura in this much pain.

"Hands and my shoulder." Maura finally opens her eyes and searches for Jane. "It hurts so bad." She leans her head to side that Jane in on seeking out any contact she can get from the brunette.

"I know it does baby. I'm sorry." Jane whispers as she places a light kiss to Maura's temple. "Help her." She spits through gritted teeth at the nurse.

"I just adjusted her I.V. it will take a few minutes but the Demerol to kick in. I'll be back in half an hour to see how she is doing. And the doctor will be back in for rounds about 9." She glares at the brunette as she walks out the door.

"Do you hear that Maura? She gave you something for the pain. Just a little longer and it won't hurt so bad. What can I do?" The brunette lightly rubs the M.E.'s shoulder. She knows from experience how painful this is. And when you are running short on pain medication nothing helps.

"Jane it hurts." Maura cries. All she wants is to be curled up with the detective, but everything hurts. When she moves her arms her hands throb. There is still a dull ache behind her eyes, as well a stinging across her chest and legs.

"Shhhh, I know baby. Try to breathe for me. It helps if you aren't holding your breath. When you tense up the pain radiates more." The brunette is at a loss of what to do. All she remembers about her time in the hospital is that her mother yelling at the nurse to keep the meds coming. For her first few days she vaguely remembers pain but she was mostly out of it. She doesn't understand why Maura's drug seem to have completely wore off.

About ten minutes after the nurse administered the medication the M.E.'s breathing began to regulate. She took a few deep breaths before opening her eyes.

"Jaaane?" Maura says with slurred speech.

"I'm right here." Jane says softly. Her own heart begins to return to normal as she sees the honey blonde's body relax.

"Hold me?" Maura's eyes are half closed.

"I can't, I don't want to hurt you." The brunette hates not giving this woman anything and everything she wants. But she will never be the cause of her pain again. So if that means not cuddling the honey blonde right now then so be it. "But I am right here, I'm not leaving." She leans back over and continually places soft kisses to Maura's forehead.

"Please. Need youuu." The M.E. can barely keep her eyes open but she refuse to let the drugs drag her down to sleep until she gets what she wants. She groans as she wiggles her way to the far end of the bed until she is up against the rail. "Please."

Jane sighs and carefully slides onto the bed trying her best not to jostle Maura too much. She keeps her hands on her legs afraid that if she touches the honey blonde she may break.

"Arm. Lift." Maura's words a drug laden, but when the detective complies and lifts her left arm she wiggles her way into her side. The light lavender scent that is distinctly Jane surrounds the M.E. The detective's arm comes down around her shoulder. Between the drugs, Jane's scent and her warmth Maura is carried off into a dreamless sleep.

Jane shifts slightly in the bed to turn into Maura. She knows when the doctor comes in she is going to be in major trouble for being on the bed. But right now she couldn't care less. If they couldn't see her proximity to the honey blonde is soothing then they were either blind or dumb. Her fear of hurting Maura was eased slightly when she got on the small hospital bed and the M.E. snuggled in and relaxed immediately. She knew that her presence was something that was a comfort to Maura for quite some time time. About three years ago is when their movie nights usually ended up with the honey blonde snuggled in close with her head on her shoulder.

* * *

The detectives eyes popped open for the second time that day when she heard someone clearing their throat. She looks to the end of the bed to see the surgeon standing there. She doesn't make any sudden movements but she does extract herself from the bed.

"What exactly do you think you are doing?" Dr Paxton's unapproving look causes the brunette glare at him.

"When she woke up this morning she was in a lot of pain. A nurse came in and gave her some more drugs. When she was finally feeling relief she asked me to lay with her. I.." She is cut off.

" I get that you care for Dr. Isles but you could have cause permanent damage. And if you disrespect my nursing staff again I will have you escorted off the property."

"You can't do that I am with Boston Homicide." She says matter of factly. This man doesn't know who he is messing with.

"Oh I think you will find that I can Detective Rizzoli." He doesn't even look at her as he is reviewing Maura's chart. "You said Dr. Isles was awake earlier, the nurse states she was in considerable pain and didn't do a neurological exam. Did you notice any eye dragging or slurred speech?"

"Do I look like a doctor to you?" The brunette just stares at the gray haired man. _Is he really asking me if I noticed some sort of neurological deficit? He's lost his ever loving mind._

"Jane, no need to be rude." Maura says softly.

"Glad to see you awake Dr. Isles. I'm Dr. Paxton I performed your surgery." He turns his attention to the woman in the bed.

"Thank you." The M.E. attempts to lift her had to shake the surgeons but quickly realizes that's not really an option.

"Mind if I do a quick exam?" He steps towards the head of the bed.

"Not at all." Maura smiles over at the brunette.

"If you just give us a minute. I'll have a nurse let you know when you can come back in." Jane mouth hangs open. Before she can say anything Maura speaks up.

"No, please let her stay." The honey blonde says with conviction. She knew the surgeon was sick of the detectives attitude but she was not about to let her out of her sight. And there was nothing the surgeon was going to do or say that Jane couldn't see or hear.

"Very well." The surgeon grabbed his penlight and did a quick exam, he asked a million questions. "Honestly you are doing far better than I had hoped at this point. But you are still going to have a long road ahead of you. I don't see any lasting neurological damage but I would like to run another MRI in a few days just to be sure. Your hands are going to require months of grueling physical therapy. And it's not going to be easy. I would also like you to see our psychologist. I haven't been given all of the details about your abduction but from your injuries alone I would say it was extremely traumatic."

"Thank you, Dr Paxton. Do you know how long I will be here? I am not expecting to get out of here tomorrow or anything. But I would really like to go home." Maura asks, her eyes give away just how sad she is about being in the hospital.

"I would like to keep you for at least a week. I think you are not taking into account your hand injuries. When you are released you are going to need someone helping you with your daily living tasks. We can help you arrange for a home aide if you'd like."

"No, that won't be necessary. I will have all the help I need. Thank you again Dr. Paxton." With that being said the surgeon takes his leave.

Jane walks back around the bed and sits on the edge. She so badly wants to hold Maura's hand but that is out of the question. She knows the surgeon is right the M.E. is going to need a lot of help once released.

"Maura?" The brunette can't bring herself to look up into those beautiful hazel eyes.

"What's wrong Jane?"

"I know that this is all my fault but if you would allow me to I would like to be there for you once you are discharged. But if you don't want me around then I completely understand." Jane's voice is so uncertain. She knows what the her best friend told her last night but she is also aware that the drugs had something to do with it.

"Jane, honey, look at me please." Maura grunts as she shifts herself in the bed to get closer to the brunette. When Jane is finally able to meet her eyes Maura continues. "First of all, this isn't your fault. Secondly, why do you think I turned down Dr. Paxton's offer to find a nurses aide? I sort of figured after our talk last night that meant we were in this together. And honestly no one else knows exactly what it's like, except you."

"If you will have me than I am more than willing to help you. This is going to be a very difficult healing process." Jane places her hand over Maura's forearm once again. "So you remember everything about last night?"

"Yeah I do, when I woke up in pain this morning I thought maybe I had dreamed it. But when you rushed to get the nurse and kissed my forehead I realized it wasn't a dream." Maura leans back against the pillows once again. The drugs are still working there magic but sitting up and getting examined drained her more than she thought it would.

"I most certainly wasn't a dream." Jane sees how tired the honey blonde woman is and places her hand on her cheek gently stroking it with her thumb. " Why don't you try and get some more rest."

"Will you lay with me again?" Maura's hazel eyes plead with the brunette.

"All you ever need do is ask baby." Jane gently gets onto the bed and holds her arm out so the M.E. and get herself comfortable. Once settled together Maura rests her head on Jane's shoulder and Jane kisses the top of Maura's head. She really wishes she could lay her head on Maura's but again at this moment that is impossible. It's not long before both woman have fallen asleep.

* * *

It has been ten days in the hospital and Maura is chomping at the bit to leave. She was told yesterday that she would be discharged this morning but the doctor still hasn't come by. She is healing up surprisingly well, another few days and her stitches can come out. Her hands are another story, no none of her tendons were severed which is a godsend. But she is still has a lot of pain and her first therapy appointment was yesterday and she got frustrated halfway through and went back to her room. As a doctor she knows the importance of therapy but as someone going through it it's completely different.

"Maura, darling, weren't you supposed to be released today?" Constance Isles has been sitting in her daughter's hospital room for over three hours and they only medical staff she has seen is an nurse who came to check Maura's dressings.

"Yes, mother." She sighs. Her mother has been in town nearly a week and has sat in her hospital room nearly every waking hours. Their relationship has improved over the last several years but right now all she wants to do is go to her home and relax in the peace and quiet.

"Would you like me to go see if I can get things moving along?" Constance knew her daughter was agitated about still being here and would love nothing more than to help her Maura get what she wants.

"If you wouldn't mind." As her mother walked out of the room Maura leans back and sighs. _I really hope she doesn't make anyone cry._ _Although if she makes someone cry I might get out of her faster._ She chuckles softly to herself when the door opens her favorite brunette walks in. "Thank god you're back."

"Miss me?" Jane smirks before pulling up a chair next to the bed.

"You have no idea. I love my mother I do but I am glad she is going back home tonight." Just as she finishes Constance walks in with a frightened looking nurse. _Okay, maybe I don't give my mother enough credit._

"Um, Dr. Isles, if you could please just sign these we can get you on your way." The nurse speaks so softly they can barely hear her.

"Are you fucking kidding me right now?" Jane blurts out. "She has been here over a week and you have seen her multiple times. You know she can't sign anything, what the hell is wrong with you?"

"I..I..I'm sorry." The young nurse looks as though she will burst into tears at any moment.

"Jane be nice, she is just doing her job." Maura gives the brunette the "what's wrong with you" look. "My mother can sign them for me and we can be on our way." Constance signs all of the documents and the nurse practically runs from the room.

"Let's get you home." Jane says with a smile.

After gathering all of their things and fighting with Maura about using a wheelchair to head out to the car, they are standing in the elevator. At one point the honey blonde had convinced herself she would never leave. But today is the day, she wishes slightly that her mother wasn't going straight to her hotel to get a little sleep before her flight but she understood. Once in the lobby of the hospital Jane left Maura with her mother while she ran to pull the car up to the door. Seeing her blue Prius pull up the M.E. couldn't wipe the grin off her face if she wanted to.

Constance placed all of the bags in the trunk while Jane helped Maura move for the wheelchair to the passenger seat. Once safely inside and everyone was buckled up Jane put the car in drive and headed towards Constance's hotel. After a very quick goodbye Jane and Maura were alone in the car and headed to Beacon Hill.

"You ready to be home?" Jane looks over at the honey blonde who can't take the smile off of her face.

"Yes, so much. I really miss Bass. And my bed. And my clothes. I just want to take a shower and crawl into my bed." Maura's eyes begin to twinkle as they pull into the driveway.

"Welcome home, Maura." Jane's smile mirrors that of the M.E's

* * *

 **Hope you all liked this chapter. For those who have asked yes I am going to have Maura go through her recovery. I feel it is important to the character and the story to let her go through that process. And for those who are asking about more mature Rizzles content it will come in due time. This is a slow burn, and the characters need to heal physically and emotionally. I promise you will get to the hardcore Rizzles content soon. Hope you all have a lovely Friday.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Hello all, back with another chapter. Keep coming with the reviews it really helps me know if I am on the right track. Just a heads up I am currently snowed in, and we haven't lost power yet but that is always a possibility so if I don't get an update out over the weekend I apologize in advance.**

 **I still sadly do not own Rizzoli and Isles.**

* * *

Once inside Maura quickly goes in search for her favorite tortoise. She finds him in his makeshift jail in her home office. Carefully stepping over the gate she squats down and gently runs a gauze covered hand over his shell.

"Did you miss me?" She coos. She has truly missed her little companion.

The detective leans against the doorway and watches quietly. It will never fail to amaze her how much the M.E. loves that reptile. Yes most people love and adore their pets, but then again most people have cute furry pets that just beg to be love.

"Hey you two." The brunette says from the doorway.

"Hello, what do you have there?" Maura turns to see the brunette leaned against the doorframe with a pint of strawberries in hand.

"Oh just a little something for your turtle." She smirks and can't hold back a chuckle.

"Tortoise. How many more times am I going to have to tell you Bass is a tortoise not a turtle." Mauar frowns.

"I know, but it's fun to get a rise out of you. I picked up some English strawberries." The brunette easily steps over the the gate and squats down next to the tortoise and honey blonde.

"You do pay attention to me when I speak." The M.E. smiles and grabs a strawberry and waves is slowly in front of the reptile.

"Believe it or not Maura I listen to everything you say." Jane says with a smile.

After feeding Bass and just hanging around in his room for a while the M.E. body begins to twinge with pain. She sighs and stands.

"I think I could go for my afternoon round of medications and a hot shower." Maura steps over the gate and heads down to the kitchen to retrieve her meds.

Jane follows she sighs as she watches the blonde struggle to get the cap off the the pill bottles.

"Let me help you with that." The brunette walks over and easily pops the tops and places the pills on the counter before going to the cabinet and retrieving a glass and filling it with water from the fridge. She also goes to the tote bag next to the kitchen island and grabs a straw placing it in the glass before setting it down in front of the honey blonde.

"Thanks." Maura says wearily. She scoops the pills into her gauze covered hand and tosses them into her mouth before bending and taking the straw between her lips.

Jane leans back against the counter. She doesn't want to bust Maura's happy little bubble but she also knows that when the honey blonde finally decides to take a show the reality of the situation is going to hit her hard. The detective's eyes are fixated on the floor while lost in thought.

"Nickel for your thoughts." Maura brought the raven haired woman out of her trace. And she tilted her head in confusion when Jane chuckled at her.

"Penny, Maura. It's penny for your thoughts." The brunette rubbed the back of her neck trying to decide what to say next.

"Oh." The M.E's cheeks flush with embarrassment. "What are you thinking about?"

"Just that, you are finally home and on the road to recovery. But." Jane stops talking and once again looks at the floor. She doesn't want up the honey blonde but anything else she says will sure to ruin the good mood Maura is in.

"But what? You can tell me anything Jane." Maura steps in front of the brunette and uses the top of her thumb to gently lift Jane's chin so she will look her in the eyes. There is only a minimal jolt of pain through her hand and she was happy she was able to keep it from showing on her face. Every time the detective saw her in pain it broke her heart and it was written all over her face.

"But you are just beginning your recovery. I have been there I know what it's like. And you mentioned wanting to get in a real shower." Jane trails off and rubs her thumb over Maura's cheek. "Right now you will need someone to help you completely. You aren't going to be able to use your hands to wash up or shampoo that gorgeous hair of yours. And I don't want you to get upset or frustrated with yourself. When I got home the first thing I did was run off to shower and broke down because I couldn't even wash my own hair. I don't want that for you Maura, it breaks my heart every time you hurt or are upset."

In her analytical mind Maura knew the detective was right. Hell she couldn't even open a pill bottle without help right now. But she had put herself in a happy little bubble where she got home from the hospital and she had Jane. They had already confessed their feelings for one another but they still hadn't had any real time alone to be just them. She wanted a proper first date, first kiss, Maura wanted it all and she wanted it right now. Not a few months down the line when her body recovered. One thing the honey blonde hadn't really thought but until just now was her body. She had been through hell and back. And it's not like the hospital has a full length mirror so she herself still hasn't seen the damage first hand. Sure when she would change her hospital gown she would take a look down and see the now healing gashes over her chest and legs but she hadn't seen the full picture.

"How about a penny for your thoughts?" Jane says quietly, she stood there for a good five minutes while the honey blonde took in her words and she watched as her gaze went off into some far off place.

"I, I uh, was just thinking you are right. I am going to need a lot of help." Maura sighs and takes a page out of Jane's book and stares at the floor. "I don't think everything has fully sunk in for me yet. I mean I know medically everything that is wrong with me but I haven't seen it. Not truly I think I have been making myself avoid it."

It breaks Jane's heart to see the M.E. finally coming back to reality. She knows this won't be easy but she will do everything in her power to help Maura through this.

"I know I said I don't need an aide because you agreed to stay with me but I think I might need one for certain things." Maura's voice cracks and tears sting her eyes.

"We will get one if you want one, but I told you already Maura. I am here and I am going to help you with whatever you need." The detective cannot fight it anymore she reaches out and pulls the honey blonde into a gentle but love filled hug.

"I am sorry Jane, I just don't know if I am ready for you to see." Maura says against Jane's neck. She feels Jane kiss the top of her head and the small gesture makes her tense body relax.

"It's okay baby, I understand. Do you want me to see if I can get someone here right away? I can.." Jane is cut off by the M.E. shaking her head against her neck.

"No, I think I'll go upstairs and get changed. But maybe you could call and set something up for tomorrow while I am gone?" Maura looks up from her spot to see the sadness in the dark chocolate orbs.

"I think I can handle that." Jane places a soft kiss on Maura's lips before releasing her hold on the shorter woman.

Maura sighs and walks up the stairs towards her bedroom. Once inside she clicks the door closed, she walks up to her perfectly made bed and runs the tip of her finger along the ten thousand thread count egyptian cotton comforter. It seems strange now to have spent so much time and money on making this room perfect. Everything had to be just right, the colors, the fabric, the height of the bed and bedside tables. All of her worries over this room seem so small and insignificant now.

She walks to her huge walk in closet and grabs a light pink pair of silk pajama bottoms, top and matching robe. She turns the light off before heading into the en suite bathroom, she again closes the door behind her and turns on the lights. She places her clean sleepwear on the counter and stares at her reflection in the mirror.

Her eyes is no longer bluish purple it has moved into the yellowish green stage of healing. Her hair is limp around her shoulder and the roots a greasier than she would have ever thought possible, dry shampoo can only do so much. In her right hairline there is a faint yellowish green bruise as well. She lifts the tips of her fingers to her cracked and chapped lips, she sucks in a deep breath as she stare at the strange in the mirror. She hasn't even gotten to the work of it yet and she is already on the verge of tears. _Just get this over with, you need to just rip the bandaid off quickly._ Maura own thoughts are shouting at her.

After another few minutes of staring at herself in the mirror and memorizing every imperfection she reaches for the zipper on the BPD hoodie she was wearing. She asked Jane if she could wear one of her favorite hoodie because the brunette's unique scent lingered in the material and it made Maura calmer. She shrugged out of the jacket and turned her back to the mirror. She awkwardly shimmied out of her black yoga pants. Her heart was racing and she could hear it pounding in her ears.

She chews the inside of her cheek nervously. _Just turn around, quite being a wuss. Turn around. Turn around._ Maura's inner monologue isn't helping her nerves, with one more deep breath she turns around. She gasps and covers her mouth with her still gauze covered hand. She knew it was going to be bad but she couldn't have imagined this in her wildest dreams. Even though the plastic surgeon they called in to close her wounds did an amazing job, she wasn't prepared for what she saw. Tears rolled down her cheeks. The gashes over her left breast and thighs have been expertly closed with internal sutures and sealed with dermabond. Over time they lines will fade and leave faint scar. However, right now they were bright red and stood out considerably against her light cream colored skin.

Staring at herself for what seemed hours Maura back herself against the wall and slide down into a crumpled heap. She knows is vain but she cannot get the thought of of her head that she is now somehow repulsive. Her perfect skin mared for all of eternity. Her heart hurts as she thinks about the brunette. She has envisioned their first time together and now all that seems lost. How will Jane ever be able to love her, in her mind she is now hideous.

She slowly pulls herself together enough to pull on her pajamas and robe but slumps back down to the floor. She doesn't want to see anyone right now. Not even Jane, how was she going to explain it without hurting the woman she loved. She is battered and broken and even with physical therapy her body will still tell the tale. She brings her knees to her chest, folds her arms across the top of her knees and lays her head down and sobs quietly.

* * *

A half hour after Maura went upstairs Jane had finished making her phone calls and had called in a pizza. She knew the M.E. would say they need a more nutritious meal so she ordered Maura a salad. The doorbell rang and the brunette quickly paid the delivery guy and set the pizza and salad on the counter. She opened a bottle of Maura's favorite red wine and set it on the counter to breathe. She looks at her watch and frowns, the honey blonde has been gone a long time. She knows how difficult this is but she is also getting worried so she heads upstairs to make sure everything is okay.

Jane knocks lightly on Maura's bedroom but gets no response. She pushes through the door to find the room empty and for a moment her heart jumps into her throat as she begins to panic. The brunette rushes to the closet and too finds it empty, then she hears something that breaks her heart into a million pieces, the honey blonde was crying. Jane walks the the bathroom door and knocks.

"Maura, it's me. Can I come in?" Jane chews her lip and waits for an answer. After a minute when she still hasn't gotten a response she knocks again.

"Please leave me alone Jane." Maura says between sobs. She just needs a little more time to pull herself together. "I'll be out in a little bit." She feels bad for making it seem like she wants Jane to leave completely and that was the farthest thing from the truth right now but she was at war with herself.

"Maura, baby. Let me come in. I promise everything will be okay." Trying sound as soothing as she can Jane place a scarred palm against the door. When she gets no answer and she hears the honey blonde sniffle again she decides enough is enough. She was going to be there for her best friend, the love of her life, whether she liked it or not. Maura might thinks she has to handle this on her own but the brunette was determined to prove her otherwise.

Jane slowly opens the door and meets resistance when the door is halfway open. She squeezes through the crack and what she finds rips a part of her soul. Behind the door Maura sits with her knees pulled up and her head laid down, and her shoulders heaving from all her crying.

"Please look at me, Maura." The detective squats down in front of the smaller woman and pushes her hair back over her shoulders.

"Please I don't want you to see me like this. Please, please just leave me alone." Maura's voice is soft and waivers.

"This is hard but you have to let me be there for you. Please, I nearly lost you and I can't lose you again. Please Maura let me help you." Jane cannot take anymore and she sits herself down in front of the M.E. and opens her legs and pulls the honey blonde to her enveloping her in a tight hug. "Can you tell me what's going on in the big brain of yours?" The brunette is desperate to stop Maura's tears and maybe a little joking with help.

"It's stupid and shallow." Maura finally relents and finally uncurls herself and hugs the brunette back.

"Nothing you are feeling is stupid." Jane rubs soothing circles against Maura's back.

"It's just, everything. It's too much. I am hideous now and I just.." She is cut off because the brunette wasn't hearing another word.

"Whoa, I am going to stop you right there. Baby you are far from hideous. You are stunning, gorgeous, the most beautiful woman I have ever met in my entire life. Yes your body looks a little different right now and I know how scary that must be for you. But you are still the same woman on the inside that I fell in love with. I wouldn't care if you have green hair all over your body or four arms. You will have some small scars but that isn't a bad thing. I just shows how strong you are, you tell me all the time how strong you think my hands are even with my scars. Why is it any different for you?" Jane kiss the top of the honey blonde's head.

"I know it is vain but I feel like you are going to leave me when you really see all of my scars. I don't just have scars on my hands Jane." Her voice is a little stronger. It's amazing how she begins to relax once in the arms of the brunette.

"I have scars other than the ones on my hands too. It shows where we have been not who we are." Jane wishes she could take the M.E. insecurities away. In time she will but right now there is no way Maura will let the brunette prove it to her. But Jane vows to make sure that Maura knows how much she means to her and how beautiful she is inside and out.

After calming down Maura raises her head and presses her forehead against the detective's. They stay in their little bubble just holding onto one another for a while. The honey blonde is the one to pull back slightly, what she sees in the Jane's eyes is nothing short of pure adoration. She half expected to see pity but she finds none and her heart swells.

"I heard the doorbell early, was someone here?" Maura says.

" Yeah I ordered us a pizza, and before you say it's unhealthy I got you a salad too. I figured we could eat and watch a movie get back our old selves?" Jane says with a smile.

"I'd like that very much." The smile on Maura's face matches that of the detective's.

"Then let's go. Let me help you up." Jane carefully untangles herself from the smaller woman and bend over grabbing ahold of Maura's biceps and pulls her gently to her feet.

"I don't know what I did to deserve you." Maura leans forward and hugs the taller woman. She will never grow tired of being able to wrap her arms around Jane.

* * *

 **Hope you all enjoyed this latest chapter. Over the next few chapters we are going to watch Maura and Jane deal with aftermath of kidnapping. I am not going to just skate over the injuries or the emotional toll the previous events had on them.**


	13. Chapter 13

**Hey all. Thanks for coming along on this ride with me. I hope you all like this latest chapter.**

 **Update: It has been brought to my attention there were some major typos and grammatical errors. I fixed the ones that have been brought to my attention. My apologies for posting a not perfected product. As always keep review and sending me messages. Those messages are how I can improve.**

 **Yeah, yeah, yeah I still own nothing. Rizzoli and Isles are simply being borrowed.**

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It has been over a month since Maura was released from the hospital. And she is having a hard time dealing with her real new reality. Her bruises are gone and her stitches have all been taken out. Outwardly you looks nearly normal, apart from the pink scars on her hands. She is no longer feeling twinges of pain throughout her body. The only exceptions being her hands.

The honey blonde arrives home after another painful therapy appointment. She sighs as she remembers the brunette is out with her mother. Jane has not left Maura's side the entire time she has been home, the detective has enough vacation time saved up she could stay home for a year if she really wanted to. Maura still can't think of a way to thank the brunette for everything she has done for her.

She slips off her shoes and jacket placing them in the hall closet before heading into the kitchen. It may only be 5 in the evening but a glass of wine sounds like a great idea. She grabs a bottle out of the fridge and a glass from the cabinet. Using the new electric corkscrew she was forced to by recently she opens the bottle and leaves it on the counter breathe while she heads upstairs to change into something more comfortable. Being Friday night the M.E. and the detective have a standing movie night that started long before they even began dating. Well not dating per say since they actually haven't gone on a real date yet but they both confessed their feelings for one another and have spent every moment together since. Neither one of them has ever been with a woman before so they have been taking everything really slow. Granted the increasing frequent makeout sessions were making it hard for Maura to keep her hands off the brunette.

After changing into a pair of yoga pants and a scoop neck tee she returns to the kitchen to retrieve her drink and order dinner. There was a new Greek restaurant in town that she had been dying to try. Jane finally gave in and said to go ahead and order it tonight and she would pick it up on her way home. Once she finished placing their order she shot the brunette a quick text.

 **I just ordered dinner, it should be ready in half an hour. M**

It was five minutes later when her phone buzzed on the counter next to the bottle of wine.

 **Awesome I'll see you soon. J**

Every time she got a text for the brunette her heart fluttered. No they were never overly lovey dovey but that fact that Jane responded quickly to each and every message. She had never been in a relationship where she wanted nor need constant contact with her partner. With Jane that all changed, if for some reason the brunette needed to go out or Maura was at a therapy appointment they would text constantly.

Maura reaches for the wine bottle and winces when she tries to grip the bottle. She has come a long way in a month but her hands are nowhere near what they were before. As a medical professional she knows healing is going to take time, but she wishes there was some sort of button to press to make it happen now. She wants to be back at work, she wants to be doing all the things she once enjoyed doing. As she attempted to lift the full bottle it slipped from her grasp and wobbled on the counter. Maura's grip strength isn't even a tenth of what it used to be and it frustrates her to no end that she cannot even pick up a simple wine bottle to pour herself a glass. She knows she can leave it on the counter and when Jane returns she will gladly pour her a glass and bring it to the M.E. But that wasn't the point Maura has always been on her own, strong and independent. Needing someone constantly even for little tasks is beginning to get to her.

"Come on, it's a damn bottle of wine." Maura mutters to herself. Her normal refined easy going nature is dwindling. She takes a few deep breaths trying desperately to calm herself down. After her therapy appointments she tended to have more issues with her motor skills, that is completely normal and expected but that doesn't help matters much. Trying with both hands she still couldn't get a grip on the smooth glass. She lets out a frustrated sigh and tries a third time and when she couldn't get it she snapped.

"FUCK!" Maura shouted at the top of her lungs and used both arms with swipe the bottle of wine and glass off the counter. The flew towards the wall sending shards of glass and wine everywhere. She starts to sob and backs herself up against the sink and sinks to the floor. She hadn't even noticed Jane walked through the door about the time she threw everything into the wall.

"Maura it's okay." Jane was at her side in seconds. She knelt down next to the shaking honey blonde woman. It kills her to see Maura this way, knowing all too well the frustrations she wraps her arm around the smaller woman's shoulders.

"No it's not!." Maura didn't mean to shout at the detective but she is just so damn frustrated. "I can't do this. It's too hard, what if my hands never work properly again. I can't live like this."

"Shhhhh, it's going to be okay. It is hard I would know. But you can do this, you will do this. It's only been about a month. You will continue to get your strength back a little each day. Look how far you've come already." Jane says softly. She internally curses herself for not being here when the honey blonde got back from her physical therapy appointment. Therapy days tend to be harder on Maura.

"What if I can never grip a scalpel again? I wouldn't be able to do my job and I really love my job Jane." Maura is beginning to calm down. She is no longer crying and her blood pressure is returning to normal. With a calmer mindset she feels a bit foolish.

"I thought you didn't like sentences that start with 'what if' or guessing?" The brunette chuckles and lifts Maura's chin to make her look at her. "You want to tell me what exactly got you so upset to the point of ruining one of your favorite bottle of wine? I mean isn't that some sort of sin for you?"

Maura can't help but laugh, she leans over and kisses the brunette on the cheek.

"I was trying to pour myself a glass. But no matter how hard I focused I couldn't grip the bottle. And I did so well today at therapy. I was even able to do finish the damn fingerboard in under a minute. I got home and my hands had stiffened so much I couldn't grasp hold of the bottle and after my third attempt, something in me just snapped." She looks over to the reddened pile of broken glass at the baseboard.

"I am so proud of you." Jane kiss the side of the honey blonde's head and lingers for a moment longer inhaling the infectious scent that is Maura. "You have been talking about beating that board since your first appointment."

"I was rather pleased with myself about it at the time." Maura says sheepishly. She knows it's silly but that fine motor skills board is one of the hardest obstacles and for her to have already been able to complete it is no small feat.

"How about you go get on the couch and get a movie ready and I'll clean this up." Jane knows the M.E. is going to put a fight about the mess but she doesn't want Maura to cut herself trying to pick up all the tiny shards of glass.

"No, Jane, I made this mess let me clean it up." She is cut off by the brunette shaking her head.

"No way, I'll do clean it and be right there. You have done more than enough work today." Jane offers a small smile. She stands and helps Maura to her feet.

Jane quickly retrieves the broom and dustpan from the pantry and gets to work cleaning the mess. Once all the broken glass has been discarded in the trash she grabs some 409 and wipes the floor to insure there is no sticky residue left behind. The brunette goes to the fridge and getting a beer for herself and a new bottle of wine for Maura. She makes her way over to the couch and sits down next to the honey blonde.

"So what are we watching tonight? Please tell me it's not another documentary." Jane says playfully, no she isn't a huge fan of documentary films but she would watch nothing else just to be able to see the smile on Maura's face while she watches them.

"No it's not another documentary, you keep telling me I need to watch Star Wars. So I ordered the collector's edition. Episode one in in and ready to go." Maura's smile fades as she sees the brunette shaking her head. "What? I thought you'd be pleased."

"It's great really, it's just that the first movie is actually, Episode IV: A New Hope." Jane says through a chuckle.

"That doesn't even make any sense." Maura watches the brunette swap out the DVD's.

"I know I don't really understand it myself but that's how it is." The detective plops back down on the couch with her beer in hand.

Half way through the second film Jane couldn't keep her eyes off the honey blonde snuggled up next to her. Her arms is draped around Maura's shoulder and her fingertips are tracing light patterns over her bicep. _God, she is gorgeous._ She is brought out of her own thought she Maura pokes her in the ribs.

"Ow, hey what was that for?" The detective rubs the non existent pain.

"You were staring at me, again." The M.E. can't help but beam at the way Jane looks at her. She has never been the object of someone's intense affections before. Yes, past partners have told her she was beautiful but none of them had ever made her feel it before. With Jane she can see that she hold every ounce of the detectives attention.

"Sorry I can't help it. Can you really blame me? You are drop dead gorgeous. I also have a question." Jane may be smiling but she is still extremely nervous. They have moved past a platonic friendship and moved into a romantic relationship. She wanted to make sure the honey blonde was healing properly before asking her out on an official date. Not that she really thinks Maura will say no, but there is always that chance.

"Well?" Maura says with furrowed brows.

"Will you go on a proper date with me tomorrow night?" The brunette says quickly before chewing her bottom lip nervously.

"I would love nothing more. Did you have someplace in mind?" Maura asks.

Jane will never tire of how Maura's eyes twinkle when she gets excited about being able to spend time together. Maura has many smiles but the one that makes her dimples pop and her eye sparkle is only for Jane.

"I do have a place in mind but I would like to surprise you, if that's alright?"

"That's more than alright, just tell me what type of attire I need for the evening." Maura says.

"Anything in your closet that isn't your workout clothes or pajamas will be just fine." Jane grins wildly.

The brunette leans down and captures the honey blonde's lips with her own. It doesn't take long before they have shifted on the couch to face each other. Maura's hands are fisted in dark raven locks and Jane's hands are gently squeezing the smaller woman's waist. When air becomes a necessity they reluctantly pull apart resting their foreheads together. They are both flushed and panting.

"How about we finish this movie before we get carried away?" Jane asks breathlessly. She doesn't want to stop and if they hadn't have broken apart nothing could have stopped her from taking the M.E. on the couch. But she wanted to do this right, and Maura deserved to be wined and dined first.

"Okay." Maura pants. She closes her eyes trying to regain some composure. God knows she would let the brunette ravish her right here and now. But neither wanted to rush things and mess this up, so slow and steady it is. She settles back in against Jane's side, laying her head on the brunette's strong shoulder and snaking her arms around her slender waist she settles in to finish the film.

As the credits begin to roll Jane looks over to the peaceful honey blonde sleeping next to her. She reaches for the remote turning off the TV and DVD player. She tucks a stray strand of hair behind Maura's ear before gently kissing lips.

"Maura, awake up. Let's get you to bed." Jane says softly maybe too softly because the M.E. didn't respond

"Baby come on let me take you to bed." Jane tries again and this time sleep laden hazel eyes are staring back at her.

"I didn't mean to fall asleep." Maura's voice is rough and she sits up rubbing her eyes.

"Don't worry about it. Let's get you in bed and I will come back down and clean up." The brunette stands extending her hand to the sleepy woman.

Maura takes the offered hand and shuffles along behind the taller woman who leads her into her bedroom. The M.E. sits on the bed and falls back into the pillows.

"You know it works better if you get under the covers you know." Jane says with a laugh.

Maura gives her a dismissing wave and all Jane can do is shake her head. She walks over to Maura's side of the bed and pulls the covers out from under her and then pulls them up over the already sleeping woman. The brunette places a kiss on Maura's forehead before heading back downstairs to clean up.

After cleaning and locking up the house Jane makes her way back into Maura's bedroom. She slides under the covers on her side of the bed and snuggles up behind the sleeping M.E. This is probably one of the things Jane loves most. A quiet house, just the two of them snuggled in bed. Being able to feel that Maura is in fact here and real. That this wasn't some dream, coming so close to losing her best friend has changed some of Jane's perspectives on life. She used to work with a reckless abandonment, it didn't matter if she came home safe. She never need to worry about her own safety before, she always made sure everyone else was safe and out of harm's way before she worried about herself. That has completely changed after the events with Maura. She understands know why Maura gets so upset when she does something careless at work and ends up hurt. Her last thoughts before sleep overtakes her are of Maura and never wanting to do anything to hurt her again and making up for past indiscretions.


	14. Chapter 14

**Hello everyone, I am so sorry for the delay in this chapter. At the end of the chapter I will be able to explain but I don't want to spoil the story so I hope you all enjoy this new chapter.**

 **Still do not own Rizzoli and Isles, just taking these lovely ladies out for a spin**

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Maura walks to the door after she hears the knock. She opens it to see her hairstylist and she ushers the older woman in and they both quickly head upstairs to Maura's bathroom. Maura wants everything for this date to be perfect and if she is honest with herself she just doesn't trust her hands enough to allow her to get herself ready. When her hair and makeup were perfect Maura walked the older woman to the door and gave her a hug before she took her leave.

Maura stands in her bathroom staring at the dress she had picked out even before Jane and her even became anything. She saw it in the window of a boutique in New York on one of her shopping trips. But now that she is standing before the dress in a matching pair of teal lace bra, panties, and garter she cannot make herself put the dress on. The neckline is too low and the slit in the side that goes up to her hip. Her bright pink scars stick out too drastically against her fair freckled skin. Everyone in the restaurant including Jane will be staring at her and not for a good reason. _What am I going to do. This is the dress, this is the dress I meant to wear on our first date. And now I can't my body is a total mess._

A half an hour later the M.E. finds herself sitting on the edge of the bathtub staring at a dress she cannot wear and freaking out because Jane should be arriving soon. Maura has no clue what she is going to do she needs to get dressed, but everything in her closet is either too short, or too low cut or Jane has already seen her in it. This was supposed to be the perfect first date but it can't be because she is scarred, broke and ugly now. Her eyes sting with tears as she grabs her phone and text the brunette.

 **Jane I am so sorry. I know you are probably getting ready but I can't. I can't go on this date. I want to date you but I'm not ready. I thought I was but I'm not. -M**

That was probably the hardest text she has ever had to send but it had to be done. She doesn't even bother to remove her makeup before she heads to her closet and changes into a pair of yoga pants and an oversized t-shirt. She crawls into bed and curls up pulling her pillow to her chest. She knows that she quite possibly just messed up everything with Jane.

Jane was about three blocks away from the honey blonde's when her phone buzzed. At the stoplight she checked her phone and her heart sank. _Why doesn't she want to go out with me? What the hell is going on._ Because she was already so close to Maura's she didn't put on the lights and sirens or send Maura a text. We pulled into the driveway. The detective had planned on knocking on the door and presenting the flowers she had purchased but instead she walks right in and places the flowers on the kitchen island before going in search of Maura.

"Maura, baby?" Jane's voice is thick with panic. _God please let her be here, please let her be okay._ She walks down the hall and looks at the woman she loves curled up with her back to the door. "Maura, can you please tell me what's going on?" She climbs into bed and wraps herself around the smaller woman. The detective runs her hand up and down Maura's side, she gives the M.E.'s hip a soft squeeze. "Please, baby."

"I'm sorry I ruined everything." Maura says mournfully.

The detective kisses the side of Maura's head. "You haven't ruined anything. You scared the hell out of me with your text but you haven't ruined anything. I am here, I am going to be here for you no matter what. But baby can you please tell me what's going on?"

"I wanted everything to be perfect for you tonight, I wanted to be perfect. I had my stylist come over because though my hands have healed surprisingly well but I still cannot do my own hair and makeup the way I normally do. And everything need to be perfect for you." Maura's voice grows thick with sorrow. "My hair and makeup were perfect and I was getting ready to get into my dress. I took one look at myself in the mirror and realized I am hideous. I had the perfect dress, hair and makeup but the rest of me is just hideous. And I couldn't let you take me out and have everyone stare at you because you are with a monster."

"Oh, Maura." The detective crawls over the smaller woman and lays in front of her so she can look her in the eyes. "I need you to look at me right now and hear me."

The M.E. opens her eyes and takes a deep breath, she hadn't expected Jane to want to stay after she ruined everything.

"There you are beautiful." Jane smiles and tucks a strand of honey blonde behind Maura's ears. "You are not hideous, you are the most beautiful woman I have ever met. You are perfect Maura, you are perfect for me and I'd like to think I am perfect for you. We both have scars but that just proves how strong we both are. And if anyone is staring at us it's because my ugly mug is with the most beautiful woman in the room."

"Stop, please just stop. You are gorgeous and you cannot say I am not hideous you haven't seen me. Not all of me, I have been very careful to make sure that my skirts are long enough and my shirts are always buttoned all the way, or I wear baggy shirts and yoga pants at home. You don't know how ugly I am. And I have to see it, I make myself look everyday. Yes my incisions have closed and the bruises are gone. But I still have ugly bright pink scars." The honey blonde can't hold back the tears.

"Show me? Wait hear me out." Jane cuts the M.E. off. "I am not asking you to get naked and I don't want to be uncomfortable. So let me, let me see you. I promise you we'll take it slow, go at your own pace. You show me what you want me to see and nothing else."

"I'm scared of letting you see. I know you love me but seeing how torn apart I am will make you want to leave." Maura says softly.

"That could never happen and if you think about it for a little while I think you'll see I am telling the truth. But we can just lay here for a while so you can think about it. And if you don't want to do this then we won't, I don't want to pressure you." The detective says with compassion and kisses the M.E.'s forehead. They lay in each others arms with Jane rubbing soothing circles on Maura's hip.

"Okay." Maura nods as she tries to gain some courage. "I will let you see but please tell me the truth. Don't tell me what you think I need to hear. I need to hear your honesty."

"I only want you to do this if you are sure." Jane sits up and turns the bedside lamp on.

Maura chews her bottom lip and moves to get off the bed so she is standing in front of the brunette. She slowly slips off her yoga pants, the oversized shirt covers her nearly to the knee. She can't bring her eyes up to look at the detective. She figures it's a good thing the other woman hasn't run out of the room yet. She takes a quick glance up and sees Jane looking at the small puncture wound on her left leg and the bottom edge of the scar on her right leg.

"I still think you have the sexiest leg I have ever seen." Jane's smile falls when she looks up and sees the honey blonde staring at her feet. "You don't need to continue, you did great baby."

"No, just..just give me a minute." Maura takes a shaky breath. _You can do this._ She lifts the shirt over her head and drops it on the floor. She stands before the brunette in nothing but the teal lace matching panties and bra. She holds her breath and waits for Jane to say something, anything.

"Still the most gorgeous woman I have ever laid eyes on. Can you please come to me." The detective says softly. Maura steps forward, she still hasn't let out the breath she has been holding. "May I touch you Maura?"

"Jane." Maura says pleading with the brunette.

"It's not like that, I just want you to understand and if I can touch you I think can get you to understand. May I?" Jane explains

"Kay." The words get stuck in her throat. Maura moves closer to Jane.

"I'll do this slow okay." Jane says and the honey blonde simply nods.

Jane runs her hand from the outside of Maura's left knee upwards, her fingertips ghost over puncture scar. She looks up and makes eye contact with the woman she loves. She repeats the process on the right leg. Using her thumb she lightly traces along the length of the pink scar. Jane leans down and softly kisses from the bottom of the scar all the way to the top.

"No, please don't." Maura's voice is strangled and she attempts to push the detective away.

"Let me show you." Jane says softly and the M.E. nods again. "I love you, and I love every inch of your beautiful body."

Jane pulls Maura closer, and ghosts her hands over the flat plane of abdominal muscles. The brunette kissed both of the honey blondes hips and up her stomach. Jane stands and pushes the honey curls over the smaller woman's shoulders. The lanky woman stands never taking her eyes off of Maura's. She watches as hazel eyes search her own. Jane knows that she is searching for any sign of hesitation but she will never find any. The detective has wanted her best friend for so long that nothing matters but making her understand she is beautiful and the detective is not going anywhere. Jane places one hand on the M.E.'s lower back giving her support while the other hand lightly runs the length of the scar above Maura's left breast. It wasn't sexual, it was an act of tenderness to show Maura just how much she loves her. That she doesn't think any part of her is hideous.

Maura sucks in a breath as Jane's fingertips ghost over her scar. Her heart is pounding so hard she is sure Jane can feel it under her fingers. The detective looks into her eyes silently asking permission and Maura gives another silent nod. The moment Jane presses her lips to the smooth bright scar Maura's eyes fall closed. She finally lets out the breath she has been holding since that first night she came home from the hospital and got her first real look at her own body. The M.E. feels Jane's lips traveling up her chest, up her neck and then she presses their lips together. It's a soft gentle kiss, it's not pushy but still filled with passion.

"Thank you." Maura says against the brunette's lips.

"There is nothing to thank me for." Jane pulls back and smiles. "I still say you are the most beautiful woman on earth."

Maura bridges the gap and kisses the brunette, this time her arms wraps around Jane's neck. _I do not know how I got this amazing woman in my life but I will do everything in my power to keep her here. I will show her everyday how much I love her._ Maura's hands fist into long raven locks. As the kiss turns heated Maura moves and pushes Jane back onto the bed so she can straddle the brunette's lap. Jane's hands settle on the honey blonde's hips. When the lack of air become too much for either to ignore they pull apart panting. Maura sucks in as much air as she can and leans in for another kiss but Jane gently cups her cheeks.

"No Maura. We don't need to do this. This wasn't about sex this was me showing you how much I love you. And how much I still want to build a shrine to that perfect body of yours. We can make out all you want and cuddle. But I want our first time to be when you are comfortable with yourself again. And I will wait for as long as you need." Jane finally bridges the small gap and places a gentle kiss on Maura's lips.

"Have I ever told you, you are too good for me?" Maura says smiling. "And I am really sorry about the date. I would really love to have that date if you still want to. But I agree I think we need to wait a little longer. I am working on getting there and with your help I think it will be sooner rather than later."

"There is nothing to be sorry about and of course I still want to go out on our date." Jane leans her forehead against Maura's. "How about we go downstairs and I order us a pizza and we watch a movie?"

"That sounds wonderful. Let me get dressed and I'll meet you on the couch." Maura moves to pick up her clothes. She dresses quickly and pulls her hair into a loose ponytail and heads down stairs. Jane is on the phone and the short woman walks up behind her and wraps her arms around Jane's slender waist.

"Pizza should be here in 30 minutes. Got any movie preferences?" Jane says turning in the honey blonde's arms.

"Nope, whatever you want is fine." Maura says.

The pizza arrives and they settle down on the couch and end up watching Deadpool because Jane has begged Maura for nearly a year to watch it with her. That if she gave it a chance she would find it just as funny as Jane does. It takes the M.E. a little bit to get over all of the medical impossibilities but then she really started to enjoy the movie. When the movie finished both woman worked to clear the dinner dishes before heading upstairs. The both brushed their teeth and went through their nightly routines before falling into bed for the night.

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 **Alright all so that's the newest chapter I hope you enjoyed it. I know you all thought this would be the date chapter but I just couldn't post the date yet. It didn't seem like the right time. Maura still has a long way to go with her own body image. I promise they will get there but there is still some healing to that needs to happen. Again I am sorry for the delay with this chapter.**


	15. Chapter 15

**Hey all, thanks for all of the follows and reviews it really helps let me know I am on the right track.**

 **I still only own my laptop.**

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Jane had just gotten a call from Lieutenant Cavanaugh saying that Chris Bennett, the man that kidnapped and tortured Maura, wanted to see Jane. Jane has some reservations about going and seeing this man face to face. She didn't trust herself to not kill him with her bare hands. She agrees to go as long as Korsak went with her. If anyone could help the detective keep a cool, cooler, head it would be him. She mulled over the idea of telling Maura but she ultimately decided against it.

The next day Jane told Maura she had to go into work for a case Korsak was working. It wasn't exactly a lie but it wasn't the truth either. But she didn't want the M.E. to worry and if she knew she was going all she would do is worry and most likely tell her not to go at all. But Jane wanted answers. That animal hadn't talked about why to took Maura, they knew it had to do with Hoyt but that information was gathered more out the mounting similarities in evidence.

Jane walks into the bullpen and slumps into her chair. She blows out a long breath and runs her hand through her hair. She was trying to calm herself down. The closer she got to work the more agitated she became.

"Hey partner. What are you doing in today?" Frost says as he looks up from his computer.

"Bennett wants to talk to me." The detective huffs. "Where is Korsak? We should have left already."

"He's using the john." Frost says.

"Not anymore. You ready Jane? I'm driving." Krosak grabs his keys.

"Oh no, you are nearly as bad a driver as Maura." Jane groans and follows the older detective to the elevator. She can hear Frost laughing from his desk.

"Do you know what he wants to talk to you about?" Korsak asks as they get in the car.

"Not a clue, I got a call from Cavanaugh last night saying that asshole wanted to talk to me. Said he wouldn't talk to anyone but me." Jane slumps back against her seat.

They arrive at the prison and get checked in and locked up their weapons and are escorted to a small interrogation room. Korsak stood in the corner leaned up against the wall and Jane sat facing the door. When the door opened two officers brought Bennett in, they shoved him in the chair and chained his legs to the bar on the ground. Bennett looked over at Jane and grinned.

"Jane, so good to see you again." Bennett said sickeningly sweet.

"Cut the crap, why the hell did you want to see me?" The detective leers at the animal before her.

"I want to talk about Dr Isles first." He smiles.

"Don't you even speak her name you sick son of a bitch!" Jane lunges across the table and Korsak and to force her back into her seat.

"Whoa, Jane calm down." He gives her shoulder a gentle squeeze. "Talk, tell Jane whatever it is that you have to tell her so we can leave."

"Did I strike a nerve detective?" Bennett leans back in his chair. "You know I already told this to Dr Isles already but you two are complete idiots and blind. She's a genius and you are from all that I have seen over the past few years of watching you a brilliant detective. But you two can't even see what's in front of your own faces. Dr. Hoyt told me you two didn't see it but you were the ultimate couple, the ultimate test. That your love for one another transcended everything else even if you couldn't see it for yourselves"

"What the hell is the point!" Jane slams her hands down on the table. She is getting tired of all the head games. Hoyt spent years getting into her head and taking things from her. And now even after Jane killed him Hoyt was still playing games with her and is now involving the woman she loves and she has had enough.

"See one, do one, teach one." He says singsongingly.

"You son of a bitch." Jane jumps out of her chair and closes her hands around Bennett's throat. It took Korsak and the two other officers to pull Jane off of him. Bennett's eyes are watering and he is couch and laughing.

"Dr. Hoyt really believed in me, that I could finish his work. But he did want me to make sure if I failed someone would carry on his work. So I did as my teacher instructed and I taught but not just one. Do you think you'll be able to sleep at night not knowing how many people are out there waiting for their chance to kill you, to kill the lovely Dr Isles?" Bennett leans his head down and wipes the spit off of his chin.

"That's enough we're done." Korsak as he motions with his head to the other officers to take the prisoner away.

"No, we can't just let him go. I need names. We need to know what he has planned. What am I supposed to do if we let him walk out of here with no information?" Jane is standing and gesturing with her hands. She cannot believe what Korsak is saying.

"We aren't going to get anything out of him. You know that all he wanted to do was bring you here so he could tell you there are more out there. We will find another way." Korsak give one more head motion and the officers take Bennett away. And with that they unlocked him from the bar on the floor and took him away.

"I seriously cannot believe you let him leave. If you would have given me ten minutes alone with him I could have made him talk. How am I supposed to tell Maura?" Jane pinches the bridge of her nose.

"Come on let's go. We'll talk some more on the way back." He gives her a tight lipped smile and opened the door. He followed out behind the young detective.

The car ride home was spent with Jane yelling and stomping her foot on the floorboard in frustration. She is so furious with Korsak right now for not letting her at least try to get Bennett to talk. She thought of all people Korsak would have backed her up on this one. He found Jane after Hoyt attacked her the first time, he was there when Hoyt taunted her behind bars, he was there when Hoty had attacked Maura and herself. He saw what Bennett did to Maura, he was there when they saved her but now he just wants to walk away. She couldn't accept that.

"Jane, listen to me. We will figure this out. We already found out that Bennett met Hoyt in prison. And that his medical background is what drew him to Hoyt. We will go over everyone Bennett had in contact on the inside and outside after his release." Korsak says as he takes a seat at his desk.

"It could be too late by then. Look how long it took us to find out where he was when he took Maura. We don't even know how many others he taught. What do we do in the meantime? We can't have a security detail follow us around until we hunt down every person that Bennett taught." Jane runs her hands through her hair.

"I know Jane. And I am sorry we can't do much else right now. But in the meantime you'll just need to be more cautious." Korsak tries to reassure the younger detective. He doesn't like this anymore than Jane does but that's all they can do right now.

"How am I supposed to tell Maura? What am I going to tell her. 'Sorry baby but there are god knows how many people out there still trying to hurt us but we just have to sit and wait'. But it's okay because I am going to be cautious and we can get a security detail? Not going to happen" Jane rants.

"I don't exactly know how we tell Muara but she has the right to know." Korsak frowns.

"Damn it! She just started being able to sleep through the night without having a nightmare. This will set her over the edge again. Things were starting to get back to normal." Jane rubs the back of her neck and sighs.

"I'm sorry Jane, why don't you go home? Let Frost and I start looking. We'll call you if we find anything. But you need to go home and process everything." Korsak says. He hates that Jane is feels like they aren't doing enough.

"Yeah, alright. But the second you find something you need to tell me. How am I going to tell Maura." Jane thinks aloud.

"I know it's going to be hard but you should probably tell her sooner rather than later. She will probably get upset if she finds out later that you didn't tell her when you first found out. It'll be hard but it's for the best. Just keep telling her we are doing everything we can and that you will be there for her. Now go home." He orders.

"Yeah, yeah old man. I'm going." Jane pushes back from her desk and grabs her keys from her drawer.

* * *

Jane didn't go right home. Instead she went to the gym. She really needed to hit something right now and she figured the gym would be a safe haven for her. The detective had called Maura on the way to let her know she was going to the gym. Maura asked her what was wrong because Jane's voice gave it away how upset she was. Jane told her she was okay and she would talk to her about it later.

When she gets to the gym she is thankful that her favorite punching bag was unoccupied. She sat on the bench in front of the bag and wrapped her hands. Once her hands are wrapped she gets straight to work. She had been going at the bag from every angle until she was dripping with sweat. She could picture in her mind that the bag was Bennett. Each punch she threw was harder than the last. Her hands hurt but she doesn't stop. She need to make sure she gets all of her anger out she isn't going to stop until she can't go anymore. She doesn't want to let her emotions get to her when she has to tell Maura.

An hour and a half rolled by and the wraps on Jane hands had started to fray. She takes a few more punches before doing a roundhouse kick to the bag sending it flying back into the all just behind it. The bags chains groan from the force of the kick. Jane grabbed her duffle bag from beside the bench and heads to the locker room to shower and change. The shower was quick and she didn't even bother to dry her hair.

* * *

Jane took the long way home so she could think up a way of telling Maura. Nothing seemed to be right. They all ended up the same way with the M.E. falling apart. She didn't want to scare Maura but Korsak was right she had the right to know right away. She had stopped off and got a pizza because Maura had a therapy appointment today and she knew the M.E.'s hands would be sore and not want to cook.

Jane pulls into the driveway and grabs the pizza and heads inside. When she walked through door she found Maura curled on the couch with one of her medical journals. She looks so peaceful like that. Almost normal even. And it was killing the detective to know she was about to rip that away from the woman she loves. She puts her gun and keys in the drawer on the table by the door.

"Hey baby, how did your therapy appointment today." The detective walks into the kitchen and puts the pizza on the island and grabs a beer for herself and pours Maura a glass of wine.

"Hello, I didn't hear you come in. My appointment went really well I was able to pick up a scalpel with minimal shaking. It was truly invigorating, I had that seed of doubt in the back of my head that I would never be able to pick up a blade again.* Maura smiles and puts her journal down on the coffee table.

"That's great Maura. I figured your hands might be hurting you so I picked us up a pizza, I hope that's okay?" Jane puts a slice of pizza on each plate and with the skills a waitress would envy, brought over the two plates, wine and beer. She places one plate and the glass of wine on the table before taking a seat.

"What exactly did you need to go in for today? You seemed pretty quiet this morning." Maura picks up her wine and takes a sip.

Jane quickly downs her beer trying to buy at least a few for seconds before she has to bursts the M.E.'s happy bubble. She sets her now empty beer bottle back down on the coffee table. She can already see the concern on Maura's face. She let out a long breath before breaking the news to the smaller woman.

"I got a call from Cavanaugh saying Bennett wanted to talk and he would only talk to me. So Korsak and I went down there." Jane's leg bounces.

"Wow." The M.E. couldn't hide her shock or fear. "What..what did he want?"

Jane pulls Maura closer to her because she had started to cry and was shaking like a leaf. Jane hated the fact that the mere mention of that animal can have such a profound effect on the M.E. She knows the feeling all too well because she too felt like this. And the detective could help but blame herself. Had she not become friends with Maura or fallen in love with her this wouldn't even be an issue.


End file.
